Dr Borlaug who developed the semi-dwarf wheat varieties that saved millions of lives in India and Asia in the "Green Revolution" of the 1960s, has told Australian grain growers that biotechnology, including GM technology, would open new doors to insect and disease resistance.

Dr Borlaug has also been a strong advocate for using technology to lift plant yields as an alternative to clearing more land: "Without biotechnology the world will need to clear more forests and wildlife habitats to keep food production balanced with rising populations," he says.

His endorsement of Australia’s biotechnology research comes as the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator has called for a period of public comment on the commercial release of a new canola variety genetically modified for herbicide resistance(*).

The 1970 Nobel Peace Prize winner was brought to Australia by the Grains Research & Development Corporation (GRDC) for Grains Week, and will be in Canberra on Friday April 4 to speak at a public forum on the subject of biotechnology, and "The Green Revolution Revisited".

Dr Borlaug will discuss his life’s work and the role that science has to play in alleviating hunger as a precursor to peace – pointing out that only 8 per cent of countries without hunger are mired in conflict while 56 per cent of countries with hunger have civil conflict.

Australia is one of the leaders in grains biotechnology, exemplified by the recent release of the first drought-tolerant wheat variety, ‘Drysdale’, developed by CSIRO Plant Industry with the support of the GRDC.

Similar research has also identified genes in plants that can confer ‘in-built’ disease resistance, and direct consumer health benefits such as improved nutritional qualities. Australian researchers are also part of an international effort to ‘decode’ the rice genome which will provide valuable genetic information about other crops, including cereals.

The public forum at which Dr Borlaug will speak is from 12-1pm at the Discovery Lecture Theatre, CSIRO Discovery Centre, Black Mountain Laboratories, corner Clunies-Ross St and Barry Drive, Canberra.

This will be followed by a question and answer session from 1-1.30pm.