Golden Rice – What Now?With some special emphasis on India

IFPRI Policy Seminar April 14th 2011

Adrian Dubock

Golden Rice Project Manager

contact@goldenrice.org

www.goldenrice.org

S R RaoAdvisor, Government of India

Orange Fleshed Sweet Potato contains 1-160 µg/g retinol equivalents

Biofortified staple foods can sustainably complement other VAD interventions, with less cost and logistical problems so better population coverage

Progress towards UN MDG Goal 4:Reduction of <5Years Child Mortality

Sources: Levels & Trends in Child Mortality. UNICEF 2010The State of the World’s Children. UNICEF 2008

www.un.org/en/mdg/summit2010*West, Klemm & Sommer, 2010.

Deaths 1990 2006 2009 2015Target

Per year 12.4m 9.7m 8.1m <4.1m

Per day ~34,000 >26,000 ~22,000 <11,200

“23 – 34% reduction in preschool mortality can be expected from

Vitamin A programs reaching children in undernourished settings”*

PRIME MINISTER SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY COMMITEE

MINISTRIES / DEPARTMENTS DEALING NUTRITION PROGRAMMES

Science &

Technology

AgricultureHuman Resource

Development

Consumer Affairs, Food and public

Distribution

Women &Child

Development

Nutrition policyNational Nutrition BoardIntegrated Child Development servicesNutrition Education & training

Consumer protectionPublic Distribution of food Price control of essential commodities

Mid- Day meal scheme

Seeds and Food Production / regulationAgricultural Research & Education

Basic research Technology DevelopmentBiotechnology

Health&

Family welfare

National blindness control Health & nutrition research ImmunizationFood safety regulation

PLANNING COMMISSION

:

1. Continue nutritional research to demonstrate effect on Vitamin A status

The human bioconversion of the beta carotene in Golden Rice to Vitamin A is better than from conventional food sources:

•Excellent in adults

•Even better in children

•The effect of fat in the diet on bioconversion is minimal

Golden Rice picture~40 g per day of Golden Rice, with 6 µg/ gram of β-carotene can provide >40% of the EAR daily.

Sufficient to combat morbidity and mortality from Vitamin A deficiency

:

2. Breeding into locally adapted and preferred rice varieties in all countries

Version 1 – Received in Taipei 309 in 2003. Research abandoned when marker free materials available

Version 2 – Received in Taipei 309 & IR64 in 2004 – Backcross breeding workcompleted. Work abandoned when higher carotenoid content materials became available

Version 3 – GR1- Received in Cocodrie in 2005. Work abandoned by Golden Rice Humanitarian Board decision in favour of GR2 in 2009, following human trials results for bioconversion

Version 4 – GR2R - Received in Kaybonnet in 2006 & via IRRI in IR36 and IR 64 in late 2010

Golden Rice Research In IndiaThree rice breeding centres involved,...........patient rice breeders.............

Everywhere, the current Golden Rice was created once by genetic engineering about 8 years ago.

Since then it has been about:• multiplying that rice seed•breeding the trait into Asian rice varieties•selecting the best materials for further breeding into local rice varieties

Some of the Golden Rice team in Vietnam

Screenhouse facility for Golden rice work in India – 600 m2 area

Back cross derived lines of Swarna

Swarna Golden SwarnaHomozygous lines available for evaluation………..

GR2R Crosses with ADT43 & ASD16 at TNAU Feb 2011

IR36 GR2R

IR64 GR2R

Swarna GR2R

All for Planting in screen house in Feb 2011

Golden Rice breeding program (India):…….

Golden Rice is in high yielding good quality Indian rice varieties

Field trials India are planned for 2012

Golden Rice is now being combined with rice with additional

agronomic traits

‘Golden Rice + submergence tolerance ’

‘Golden rice + Bacterial Blight resistance’

‘Golden rice + high iron rice combination’ is planned

:

3. Marketing research to understand peoples interest, attitudes & sources of influence

‘ New food crops‘ have a 5000 year movement history:

Sunflower

Corn

Potato

TomatoCassava

Sugar beet

Wheat

Coffee

Rape

Rape

Kiwi

Sugar cane

Soybean, Bean

1550

1900

1529

1804

= Years1955

Source: Fond der chemischen Industrie - Nr. 20 »Biotechnologie/Gentechnik«, Frankfurt/M, 1996, modified 2003

19

Demand creation & consumption: modifying behaviour:

What do people think?

After probing for attitudes, eventually information is given about Golden Rice...then attitudes probed again

:

4. ContinueEconomic analysis to support policy adoption of Golden Rice as an additional health intervention

Cost effectiveness per DALY saved (US$)

Stein et al., Nature Biotechnology 2006, 24, 10, 200-201

World Health Organisation value of a DALY 620 1860

Highest efficiency Lowest efficiency

Supplementation costs (Vit A capsule distribution)

134 599

Vitamin A food fortification 84 ?

Golden Rice 3 19

DALY = Disability Adjusted Life Year

• 35 per cent of the developing world's malnourished children.Malnourishment

• largest number of Vitamin A deficient childrenin the world; only 43 per cent of children(aged 6-59 months) receive the recommendedtwo doses of Vitamin A per year.

Vitamin A deficiency

• 75 per cent of children and 51 per cent of women Iron deficiency anemia

• no way to obtain iodine from the diet;fortification is essential. only 50 per cent ofIndian households have access to adequatelyiodized salt.

Iodine deficiency

• Contributes stunting of 42 per cent of children Zinc deficiency

HIDDEN HUNGER IN INDIA

• 330,000 child deaths precipitated Vitamin A deficiency

• 6.6 million children born mentally impaired Iodine deficiency

• Intellectual capacity reduced by 15 per cent Iodine deficiency

• 22,000 people, mainly pregnant women, die severe anaemia

• 200,000 babies born with neural tube defects ; 16 times the global average.

Folic acid deficiency

THE CONSEQUENCES OF MICRONUTRIENT DEFICIENCIES IN INDIA EVERY YEAR

Indian “public’s” concerns about food safety and the environment, especially concerning genetically enhanced crops

Regulatory aspects of genetically engineered crops

Multiplication and delivery systems for biofortified crop seeds

Creation of an enabling environment for adoption through attitudinal research, appropriate partnerships and social marketing

Making biofortified foods available to the Indian Population requires consideration also of:

Asian GDP could benefit by >US$15 billion annually -due to increases in agricultural productivity - from conservatively adopting Golden Rice, …………

Kym Anderson, et al. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 3380, August 2004

BREEDING OBJECTIVESIRON ZINC PROVITAMIN A

GERMPLASM SCREENING & NUTRIENT ANALYSIS

MICRONUTRIENT RETENTION &BIOAVAILBILITY

BIOLOGICAL IMPACT IN HUMANSEFFICACY TRIALS

POPULATION IMPACT -EFFECTIVENESS

PUBLIC OR PRIVATE OR PPP DELIVERY SYSTEMS

BIOFORTICATION STRATEGY FOR INDIA SEED TO SPOON

:We welcome Helen Keller International to the Golden Rice project in Philippines and Bangladesh as we move towards adoption of Golden Rice as an additional intervention for Vitamin A deficiency alleviation

We are delighted with the new funding for Golden Rice’s development in Philippines and Bangladesh from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

The regulatory data generated will be made available free of charge also to the Golden Rice projects in other countries, which will be very helpful

For additional information, please visit our website: www.goldenrice.org

ETH / Swiss Federal Funds European CommissionHarvestPlusUSAIDSyngenta CompanySyngenta FoundationNational Institutes of Health (USA)The Golden Rice Humanitarian BoardBayer, Mogen, Novartis, Monsanto, Orynova, Zeneca

Rice Teams & budgets @•IRRI

•Phil Rice- Philippines

•CLRRI- Vietnam

•DBT, IARI, DRR,TNAU- India

To all our sponsors at various times,since before 1990: