Current Challenges in Plant Breeding: New Plant Breeding Techniques - Definition, Regulation, Potential and Acceptance

Successful plant breeding has always relied on state-of-the-art technologies to generate, screen
and select superior plants. With the rapid technological development in genetics, genomics and
molecular biology, but also in bioinformatics and robotics, a range of NPBTs became (and will
become) available. These technologies have the potential to further advance plant breeding but
bear, as all new technologies do, certain risks and raise certain concerns. How can NPBTs be
defined? How are these technologies regulated and assessed for potential risks? Which potential
do they have to benefit plant breeding, and what is the acceptance of such technologies in the
society?
This seminar addresses these questions. It is also part of the ETH Zurich lecture „Current
Challenges in Plant Breeding“, where we aim to bring together MSc and doctoral students
with national and international experts in plant breeding to discuss current activities, latest
achievements and future perspectives. Therefore, the students will give their view and insights
on definition, regulation, potential and acceptance of NBPTs.
In addition, we have assembled a selection of very interesting keynote presentations by eminent
speakers such as Urs Niggli (Institute of Agroecology, Switzerland), Cristobal Uauy (John Innes
Centre, United Kingdom), Robert Hoffie (IPK Gatersleben, Germany) and Angela Bearth (ETH
Zurich, Switzerland).