Hayward, California
September 15, 2006
German-based
Selecta Klemm and
US-based Mendel Biotechnology
Inc. today announce their definitive agreement to form a
joint venture to develop and market transgenic ornamental
plants.
The new entity,
Ornamental Bioscience, combines Mendel's technological
expertise and patent estate in drought, cold and freeze
tolerance, disease resistance and flower stability traits along
with Selecta's experience in plant transformation technology,
its extensive variety patent estate and experience in marketing
ornamentals world wide. Ornamental Bioscience has secured
commercial rights to critical enabling technology, through
Mendel, that enable it to bring transgenic ornamental plants to
the marketplace.
According to Christian Klemm, CEO of Ornamental BioScience: "We
envision the ornamental market will undergo substantial
development in the coming decade. From 1995, transgenic plants
rapidly captured market in the primary agricultural food crops.
Now it is time for ornamental horticulture to catch up. The
global market for ornamental flowers has an annual retail value
of several billion dollars. Ornamental Bioscience will apply
modern biotechnology substantially to improve the characteristic
traits for producer, trade and consumer to bring us premium
positioning in this market. For marketing and distribution we
are considering different models depending of the specific
nature, market and added value of each product."
Ornamental Bioscience today is working exclusively on crops from
the Selecta product range, successfully transforming Petunias,
Poinsettias, New Guinea Impatiens and Geraniums. In the coming
years the range of products is expected to extend greatly.
We believe that this technology has an exciting future and
intend to contribute to its acceptance as an industry standard.
As part of this strategy, we will cooperate with leading
breeders and distributors for pot plants and cut flowers.
Ornamental Bioscience has an exceptional opportunity to bring
value to the market by combining the expertise of Mendel's
discoveries of the functions of genetic switches that control
many important aspects of plant growth, metabolism and stress
responses and Selecta's experience. Over the past decade Selecta
has added the skill of developing successful transformation
protocol to its outstanding expertise in breeding, manufacturing
and marketing ornamental plants world wide.
Family-owned Selecta is one of the world's leading breeding
and propagation companies in the field of
vegetatively-propagated ornamental plants. Over the past 40
years Selecta has created a wide estate of patents and breeder
rights for cut flowers, pot, and bedding plants. Throughout the
world Selecta operates out of seven key production, breeding and
distribution locations along with other facilities.
Innovation and sustainability are the driving force behind
Selecta's development. The latest testimony to this is the
development and exclusive introduction of the world's first
double flowered Calibrachoa to market in 2006.
Selecta has been active in the field of biotechnology since
1996. The company cooperated in developing a blue carnation with
Florigene of Australia. Blue carnations are to date the only
transgenic ornamental plants manufactured and distributed
throughout the world.
Following this, in 2002, Selecta identified abiotic stress
tolerance as a key issue for the future market and began work
under a technology license from Mendel. In 2005, a disease
resistance program was established. Currently transgenic
Petunias, Poinsettias, New Guinea Impatiens and Geraniums are
being evaluated for frost, drought and disease resistance.
Mendel Biotechnology, Inc., a closely-held private company,
has been a pioneer in the application of functional genomics to
the study of plant genes. Mendel has identified and patented the
use of genes (transcription factors) that control many aspects
of plant growth and development, and is using such inventions to
develop or co-develop new plant varieties with improved
productivity and quality. The approximately 27,000 genes in the
Arabidopsis genome are controlled by approximately 1,800
different transcription factors. Mendel has relationships with
leading agricultural, forestry and horticulture companies for
the commercialization of improved seed and plant products, and
is developing new seed products for the emerging bioenergy
market, focused on cellulosic ethanol. In the field of
ornamentals Mendel has licensed technology exclusively to
Ornamental BioScience and has become a significant minority
shareholder in the new company. |
|
