Bayer CropScience to commercialize its GM rice variety in 5 years

German multinational company Bayer CropScience, one of the global leaders in hybrid rice seeds, is intensifying its research on genetically modified (GM) rice which it hopes to commercialize in about five years.

"We are currently undertaking research on GM rice and we have a product that can be ready in five years during which time we are also anticipating that GM rice would be more acceptable, especially in major rice-producing countries," said Damien Plan, Bayer CropScience BioScience public affairs manager in Asia Pacific.

Plan said that while Bayer is carrying out the development of its GM rice, the company will only commercialize the product if it is accepted by consumers.

"We have to have acceptance at the global level, so while carrying out all these studies on GM rice, we are also taking a wait and see position, we won’t be pressing for it if the market is lukewarm, but we will certainly be ready for worldwide seed distribution when the market is ready," said Plan.

Plan said the Philippines is strategic to Bayer’s thrust to further consolidate its position in the hybrid rice seeds business in Asia, and consequently, in other areas such as GM rice. He noted that Bayer’s local unit, Bayer CropScience Philippines, was one of the first in the region to focus on commercializing its high-yielding Arize Bigante hybrid rice seeds.

Bayer CropScience Philippines will market two new high-yielding rice seed varieties in the country in the next two years.

Carlos Saplala, country manager of Bayer CropScience, said in a previous interview that ongoing local field trials in selected sites show very encouraging results.

"We are confident that these two new varieties will be well-received in the market as have our existing hybrid rice seeds that are steadily getting a bigger chunk of the market," said Saplala.

Saplala said the company will commercialize in 2007 the production and distribution of Arize H-64 while a still unnamed variety that is resistant to the dreaded bacterial leaf blight (BLB) disease will be introduced in 2008.

"The new Arize H-64 is an improved version of our existing Arize variety. It has shorter-maturity period and longer slender grains and is slightly aromatic," said Saplala, noting that trials have shown that the new variety can yield up to 7.7 metric tons or 115 cavans per hectare which is 15 to 20 percent more compared to traditional inbred rice seed varieties sold in the local market.