Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
and. human. health. beneits. due. to. transgenic. ornamentals.. Respondents. were.
particularly.interested.in.modiications.that.confer.increased.disease.resistance,.pest.
resistance,.plant.longevity,.and.increased.lowering.time..When.asked,.respondents.
indicated.a.strong.preference.for.the.labeling.of.transgenic.ornamentals..The.authors.
of.the.study.suggest.that.the.results.indicate.that.developers.should.emphasize.the.
beneits.gained,.not.the.technology.used.to.develop.new.varieties.
Consumer. and. grower. acceptance. will. also. be. inluenced. by. any. added. cost.
related. to. the. regulatory. and. patent. hurdles. discussed. above.. Will. there. be. sufi-
cient.added.value.to.justify.the.increased.cost.and.can.the.developer.pass.the.cost.
on.to.the.grower.and/or.the.consumer?.If.so,.how.will.this.be.done?.In.commodity.
crops,.such.as.herbicide-tolerant.soybeans,.this.has.been.successfully.accomplished.
by. use. of. a. technology. fee.. The. farmer. buys. the. seed. and. pays. an. additional. fee.
in.consideration.of.the.additional.cost.and.beneits.of.the.herbicide.tolerance.gene.
technology.contained.within.the.seed. 39 .It.is.unlikely.that.such.a.fee-based.system.
would.be.necessary.or.be.practical.for.transgenic.landscape.plants..However,.if.the.
value.added.can.be.clearly.demonstrated.to.the.grower.and.consumer,.it.is.possible.
that.transgenic.landscape.plants.could.be.marketed.at.a.premium.relative.to.existing.
varieties.. Indeed,. in. the. ornamental. sector,. it. is. not. uncommon. for. new. improved.
varieties.(developed.by.conventional.breeding).to.carry.a.higher.wholesale,.royalty,.
and.retail.price.than.older.established.varieties.
The.changing.structure.of.the.industry.itself.may.eventually.favor.the.development.
of.transgenic.landscape.plants..The.past.few.years.have.seen.tremendous.consolida-
tion.in.the.ornamental.industry. 40 .As.a.result.of.these.consolidations,.the.number.of.
breeding.companies.has.decreased.while.their.size.has.increased..This.does.not.nec-
essarily.change.the.likelihood.that.the.remaining.large.companies.will.adopt.trans-
genic.technologies..Most.of.the.major.ornamental.companies.have.experimented.with.
genetic.engineering.and.most.have.shelved.their.efforts.in. transgenic.ornamentals..
Only. Suntory. has. commercialized. a. transgenic. product. in. the. form. of. cut. carna-
tions. in. the. United. States,. Europe,. and. Japan 9 . and. more. recently. lavender-colored.
“blue”.cut.roses.in.Japan. 10 .In.other.words,.the.size.of.a.company.does.not.necessarily.
change.the.fundamental.economics.of.commercializing.transgenic.ornamentals.
Currently,. the. main. factors. inluencing. the. prospects. for. the. development. of.
transgenic.ornamentals.are.those.related.to.regulatory.oversight.and.those.related.to.
freedom.to.operate..Additional.streamlining.of.the.regulatory.process.and.additional.
research.aimed.at.a.further.assessment.of.the.risks.and.beneits.associated.with.trans-
genic.ornamentals.will.help.facilitate.the.commercialization.and.public.acceptance.of.
transgenic.ornamentals. 21,41 .At.the.same.time,.the.expiration.of.key.enabling.patents.
and.the.activities.of.organizations.such.as.Cambia.and.PIPRA.should.help.facilitate.
access.by.breeders.to.the.necessary.technology.
REFERENCES
.
1.. Bernardo,. R.,. Molecular. markers. and. selection. for. complex. traits. in. plants:. Learning.
from.the.last.20.years,. Crop Sci ..48(5),.1649,.2008.
.
2.. Castle,. L..A.. and. McElroy,. D.,.Agricultural. input. traits:. Past,. present. and. future,.
Curr. Opin. Biotechnol ..17,.105,.2006.
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