Source: The News via Checkbiotech

The Pakistan Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (MINFAL) is planning to release first home-grown insect-resistant Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) cotton variety during next sowing season to maximise the production of cotton crop for domestic needs and exports.

“The insect-resistant BT cotton variety IRFH-901, developed by the National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE), Faisalabad is all set to become the first home-grown variety for commercial cultivation in the country,” Commissioner, Agriculture Development, Dr Qadir Bux Baloch told APP.

The share of BT cotton in total world cotton production has reached 30 per cent and is expected to touch 40 per cent mark by the year 2010.

Dr Qadir Bux Baloch said, besides encouraging the domestic production of BT cottonseed by research institutes, the government was also in the process of talks with a world renowned biotechnology company to ensure the transfer of technology in this vital sector. He hoped that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was likely to be signed with this company shortly.

He said that efforts were also on to completely eliminate the problem of Cotton Curl Leaf Virus (CCLV) from the country and hoped that a variety resistant to the virus would be developed soon.

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