Transgenic Horticultural Crops in Asia - Transgenic Horticultural Crops: Challenges and Opportunities - page 169

was. given. high. priority. in. each. country. based. on. SWOT. (strengths,. weaknesses,.
opportunities,.and.threats).analyses.performed..In.the.second.step,.ex-ante.analysis.
on.the.socioeconomic.impacts.of.Bt.eggplant.was.conducted.by.a.team.of.local.and.
international.economists.working.in.the.project..The.results.showed.that.eggplant.is.
a.very.important.food.for.the.people.of.India,.Bangladesh,.and.the.Philippines.and.
a.highly.proitable.cash.crop.for.small.farmers.in.the.three.countries..Farmers.who.
grow. eggplant. in. both. regions. share. the. same. problem—need. for. a. cost-effective.
and.safe.method.to.control.the.most.damaging.insect.pest.of.eggplant—the.eggplant.
fruit.and.shoot.borer.(EFSB)..Eggplant.yields.and.incomes.are.drastically.reduced.
by.the.damage.caused.by.EFSB..Farmers.resort.to.frequent.application.and.exces-
sive.amounts.of.pesticide.to.control.the.pest,.raising.the.level.of.pesticide.residue.in.
the.environment.and.the.eggplant.consumed.by.the.public..Conventional.breeding.of.
insect-resistant.varieties.has.failed.because.no.resistant.eggplant.varieties.have.been.
found.that.can.effectively.control.EFSB..The.results.of.the.ex-ante.analyses. revealed.
that.substantial.economic.and.environmental.beneits.are.projected.if.Bt.eggplant.
is.commercialized.in.all.three.countries. 48,49 .Other.important.considerations.such.as.
freedom.to.operate,.favorable.regulatory.approval.and.likelihood.of.gaining.market.
acceptance.and.public.support.were.deemed.feasible.
Considering. the. cost. of. product. development. and. regulation,. ABSPII. made. a.
strategic.decision.to.use.one.common.transformation.event.owned.by.Maharashtra.
Hybrid.Seed.Company.(Mahyco),.Mahyco.eggplant.event.EE-1,.in.all.three.geogra-
phies..The.strategy.presented.opportunities.to.spread.the.regulatory.cost.and.contrib-
ute.to.the.regional.harmonization.of.regulatory.systems.by.building.a.common.safety.
package.for.the.event,.which.was.proposed.to.be.submitted.to.the.regulators.in.each.
partner.country..In.addition,.the.trait.stability.and.eficacy.of.EE-1.has.already.been.
proven.and.was.determined.to.be.technologically.a.near-market.product..The.choice.
of.EE-1.also.presented.an.opportunity.to.explore.the.opportunities.of.a.public-private.
partnership.
From. the. very. outset. of. the. Bt. eggplant. project,. ABSPII. in. cooperation. with.
Hyderabad-based.Sathguru.Management.Consultants.Pvt..Ltd..worked.with.Mahyco.
to. devise. a. system. whereby. all. farmers. in. India. as. well. as. Bangladesh. and. the.
Philippines. could. gain. access. to. the. Bt. eggplant. technology.. The. dialogue. led. to.
a. mutually. beneicial. arrangement. that. addressed. freedom-to-operate. issues. via.
appropriate.licensing.arrangements..The.Bt.eggplant.transformation.event.developed.
by.Mahyco.with.support.from.Monsanto.(which.licensed.the.use.of.Cry1Ac.expres-
sion.vector).was.thus.cleared.of.potential.intellectual.property.(IP).barriers,.paving.
the. way. for. further. development. and. commercialization.. Mahyco. sublicensed. the.
technology.on.a.royalty-free.basis.to.the.public.sector.partner.institutions.in.India,.
Bangladesh,.and.the.Phiilippines. 50 .A.speciic.product.stewardship.and.monitoring.
strategy.to.be.implemented.by.the.licensee.to.safeguard.the.interest.of.the.licensors.
was.also.devised.during.the.sublicensing.process..The.issue.of.market.share.among.
the. different. Bt. varieties. in. India. was. also. addressed. by. segmenting. the. market.
between.the.Bt.eggplant.hybrid.of.Mahyco.and.the.Bt.varieties.of.the.public.partners.
The.regulatory.ile.development.of.Bt.eggplant.beneited.tremendously.from.the.
expertise.and.experience.of.Mahyco,.the.irst.Indian.company.to.commercialize.
Bt.cotton.hybrids.in.India..In.addition.to.access.to.data.for.the. cry1Ac .gene.construct.