Successful celebration of the BIOVEGEN Conference «FRUIT TECHNOLOGY: The Future of Plant Technology»

On October 6, 2016, the BIOVEGEN Conference “TECHNOLOGY ATTRACTION: The Future of Technology in Plants”. The event, held within the framework of the FRUIT ATTRACTION International Fair (IFEMA Madrid), brought together more than 200 agents from the agri-food sector with R&D activities, from the research, business and Administration fields.

• 46 companies (improvement, production, marketing, agrobiotechnology, nutrition, plant health and protection, R&D management, etc.)
• 23 Research Organizations (Universities, OPIs)
• 10 Others (Administration: CDTI, MAGRAMA…)

The objective of the Conference was to bring together prominent representatives of Spanish Science, Business and Administration to convey the technological revolution that is taking place in Plant Biology, thus highlighting the crucial tool for competitive improvement that these advances provide to the plant production sector, and What is the international context and trends in this regard. During it, experts of recognized prestige in the field of Plant Biology and the agri-food sector showed the current panorama, approached from the perspective of Science, Business and Administration.

The opening of the Conference, which was led by the director of the INIA, Manuel Láinez, was also attended by José Pellicer, President of BIOVEGEN. Both welcomed the attendees and presented the Conference which, held within the framework of the Fruit Attraction Fair, sought to contribute to a greater rapprochement between Technological Supply and Demand, to make profitable investment in research and to develop opportunities for collaboration and business.

Gabino Sánchez-Pérez, a Spanish scientist who is currently researching at Plant Research International at the University of Wageningen (Netherlands) made the first presentation describing the "technological revolution" that is being brought about in Holland and could also come about in Spain, the development of new tools in plant biology to obtain new varieties. There, from Plant Research International, Gabino directs several projects on plant improvement, based on public-private consortia with strong investment from companies dedicated to breeding.

Secondly, Jorge Jordana approached his presentation from the perspective of the private sector, pointing out its difficulties and virtues and the invisibility that innovative activity has within a politically invisible sector. In Jordana's words, "we cannot compete either by company size or costs, so we should be dedicated to doing so in training and innovation, in intelligence, in knowledge. We have first-rate researchers - the third in the world in publications - but we fall to 19th place in patent generation, and we also have a food sector that in 2015 led the fundraising for R&D, but innovation continues to be the most important activity. invisible of a politically invisible sector.

Next, Luis González Vaqué offered a vision of the sector based on the existing international legislative framework regarding plant biotechnology, exposing the present and future state of the demands and needs that the agri-food market has in terms of innovation.

The last presentation was made by the Manager of BIOVEGEN, Gonzaga Ruiz de Gauna, who brought together the ideas that arose during the Conference and described the role of BIOVEGEN as a catalyst for the development of R&D projects, as well as the tools that, from the Platform , are used to generate business opportunities in the sector.

The Conference made clear the business development provided by new techniques in plant biology, and highlighted the growing importance of technological development for improving the competitiveness of the Spanish agri-food sector. Finally, a cocktail was offered to attendees that served to promote interactions between the public and private sectors through representatives of the numerous entities that attended the event.

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Program of the day

12:00 p.m. Welcome and introduction

12:10 p.m. SCIENCE: Technological revolution and new tools in Plant Biology

• Gabino Sánchez-Pérez. Plant Research International, Wageningen University
• Content: Scientific vision of the current situation and future trends in Plant Biology. Tools and processes available for the development of new products

12:40 p.m. COMPANY: Trends in agri-food R&D. Technological needs and demands of the agri-food sector

• Jorge Jordana Butticaz de Pozas. Patron Director Agri-Food Area. LAFER Foundation
• Content: Vision of the agri-food industry and needs of the private sector in the field of agri-food innovation: primary production and transformation. Evolution and perspectives of the private sector from the point of view of R&D

1:10 p.m. CONTEXT: Present and future of plant production. Legislative framework and future market demands

• Luis González Vaqué. Coordinator of the Agri-Food Policies Area. TRIPTOLEMOS Foundation
• Content: European and international legislative framework of the technologies offered by Plant Biology in the context of the future demands of the plant production market. Evolution, current trends and future perspective

1:40 p.m. BIOVEGEN as a R&D catalyst in plant production

• Gonzaga Ruiz de Gauna Gutiérrez. Plant Biotechnology Technological Platform (BIOVEGEN)

1:50 p.m. Colloquium and questions

2:00 p.m. Closing of the Day

Cocktail and networking among attendees