Rijk Zwaan has announced a new official agreement with technology foundation STW to work together on a scientific research programme entitled 'Meiosis, managing meiotic recombination in plant breeding'.
The five-year initiative will see the Dutch groups garner information and knowledge to enable more efficient development of new plant varieties, with an optimal combination of natural characteristics.
Backed by €3m worth of funding, split between STW and Rijk Zwaan, the programme will see universities submit proposals for research projects to be assessed by a committee, which subsequently selects based on peer reviews and offers funding to the highest-ranked proposals.
The research programme is focused on studying the process of meiosis and meiotic recombination, which forms the most important cornerstone of classic plant breeding and ensures that the natural characteristics of both parents are combined during crossing, Rijk Zwaan noted.
