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Evogene Ag-Seed Division Awarded Prestigious €1.2M Horizon Grant to Develop Oil-Seed Crops with High CO2 Assimilation and Drought Tolerance
The grant under the EU Horizon Program was approved following the successful proof of concept from the previous program launched in 2016 REHOVOT, Israel, May
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[{"type":"text","content":"The grant under the EU Horizon Program was approved following the successful proof of concept from the previous program launched in 2016\nREHOVOT, Israel, May 9, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ag-Seed Division of Evogene Ltd. (Nasdaq: EVGN) (TASE: EVGN) (\"Evogene\"), a leading computational biology company targeting to revolutionize life-science product discovery and development across multiple market segments has announced that it has been granted a prestigious EU Horizon grant of €1.2 million, to support the creation of oil-seed crops that have high carbon-dioxide assimilation and enhanced drought tolerance. The project, Crop4Clima, has an overall budget of €2.5 million and is expected to be executed over 32 months. This grant follows the successful completion of the FutureAgriculture Consortium's proof-of-concept in 2021, which demonstrated the potential for increased agricultural productivity and environmental sustainability.\nThe program's goal is to develop crops, focusing first on canola and rapeseed seeds, with the ability to assimilate 60% more carbon dioxide from the air while requiring 20% less water intake when compared to crops grown under standard agricultural practices in order to support sustainability goals. It supports efforts to reduce global warming by using plants with a higher uptake of carbon dioxide accumulation from the atmosphere. In addition, it enables the saving of scarce water resources and improved plant tolerance against drought conditions. Furthermore, it is expected that biomass yield per hectare will improve while the plant maintains a high oil content, as demanded by canola-derived products and the biofuel industry. The potential commercial value of such products for the food, animal feed, and sustainable energy industries is significant.\nThis development follows a successful proof-of-concept, completed in 2021 as part of the FutureAgriculture Consortium funded by the EU Horizon Program. Results showed increased carbon-dioxide assimilation by plants, combined with improved drought tolerance and plant productivity. These positive results indicated the commercial potential of increased agricultural productivity while supporting sustainability goals. They led the Horizon 2020 reviewers to recommend continuing funding the project's development as a significant measure to reduce climate change.\nCrop4C...