Research Woody Plants

Send

International meeting: Biotech fruit 2008

Fruit breeding in Dresden-Pillnitz: Dispute about gene technolog. International meeting Biotech fruit 2008

Play movie

Henryk Flachowsky from the Institute for Breeding Research on horticultural cultures and fruit, Julius-Kühn Institute (JKI), Dresden-Pillnitz

“What we expect from gene technology is that we can react faster to problems in fruit growing.”

Play movie

Peter Teichmann from the action group Gene technology-free Pillnitz

“Our main concern is directed against the careless handling of possible risks of gene technology on its release.”

At the beginning of September 2008, the Julius-Kühn Institute in Dresden Pillnitz hosted an international symposium on Biotechnology in fruit breeding. Over the course of one week, 170 scientists from 40 countries informed themselves about the standing of fruit breeding using biotechnological methods. In particular, this concerned approaches to combine traditional breeding methods with biotechnological methods.

Prior to the meeting, for two days critics of gene technology had discussed alternatives to gene technology and demanded in their “Pillnitz declaration” a fundamental renunciation of gene technology.

GMO Safety spoke with Henryk Flachowsky from the Pillnitz Institute for Breeding Research as well as with Peter Teichmann as a representative of the Gene technology-free Pillnitz initiative.