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May 29, 2009
Source:
CropBiotech Update
The lead Bt cotton researcher in
Kenya Dr. Charles Waturu predicts that the country will
commercialize the crop in three years time.
Bt cotton has been undergoing contained field trials (CFT) under
the Kenya Agricultural Research
Institute (KARI) for about five years.
Speaking to senior policy makers from agriculture sector
ministries who were on a fact-finding mission at the Bt cotton
CFT site in Thika, near Nairobi, Dr. Waturu, who is also the
KARI Thika Center Director, said biotech cotton was urgently
need to help boost production, which was in a free fall due to
challenges caused by pests and diseases.
Cotton production in Kenya has fallen by 70% from 70,000 bales
in the mid 1980s to less than 20,000 bales last year. This has
forced the country to import about 100,000 bales to meet the
shortfall. |
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