15 minute read
ACROSS CANADA
tHE futuRE of AGRicultuRAl BioloGicS
improVing Crop prodUCTion
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Demand for agricultural products continues to grow as the world’s population increases. At the same time, crop productivity can be seriously impacted by stresses such as drought, pests and weeds. Fertilizers and pesticides play a part in overcoming these obstacles, but crop biologics have an increasing role in the success of the agriculture industry.
the Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) is working with academic researchers and biotech companies to develop and commercialize a new generation of crop biologics, providing an environmentally sustainable solution to increasing crop production by improving seed viability, plant health and crop yield. Located in the centre of Canadian agriculture, SRC offers world-class fermentation facilities and contract services that are accelerating the commercialization of this next generation of crop biologics.
In the context of improving global food security, SRC vice-president of Strategic Initiatives Phillip Stephan feels “it’s quite exciting for us to enable process optimization, scaleup, and production of these crop biologics that hold such promise and potential impact for Saskatchewan crop producers and the global markets they serve.”
Crop biologics
Stephan adds that recent advances in metagenomics and bioprospecting technologies are creating tremendous opportunities to increase food production and promote global food security through the discovery, development, and commercialization of new crop biologics.
Crop biologics research focuses on beneficial microbes, their symbiotic relationships with plants and how those relationships help plants thrive under a range of environmental stresses. Like the good bacteria that lives in your gut and helps your body’s digestion and metabolism, the right microbes can improve plant health by fighting disease, increasing nutrient absorption and improving water use efficiency.
Microbes called endophytes can work inside a plant’s cells to augment the plant’s metabolism and contribute to overall health. Endophytes are receptive to what is going on
— Vladimir Vujanovic, University of Saskatchewan
A 15 L stainless steel automated bioreactor. A lab technician prepares samples for testing. Photos courtesy of SRC
outside of the plant, assisting it to cope with external stressors such as disease, pests and climate irregularities such as drought, by providing good enzymes to balance the plant’s defense or resistance to these stressors.
Scientists, like the University of Saskatchewan’s Vladimir Vujanovic, have identified various naturally occurring microbes that can be used to improve plant health when introduced to the plant’s microbiome, an ecological community of microorganisms. These microbes were identified through bioprospecting of agricultural crops and utilized in recent research and development. Microbes showing positive effects in initial studies are then applied to plant seeds, soil, roots or leaves to validate their impact on the plant productivity.
7.4 billion and growing
According to the United Nations, the world population is expected to reach 9.6 billion by 2050. Water and food resources are going to be under serious pressure as the world’s global population continues to climb. The challenges of water and food security are further aggravated by the impacts of climate change and combine to put a lot of strain on the agriculture sector.
Indigo, a Massachusetts based company focused on harnessing nature to help growers sustainably feed the planet, believes that biologics represent a major breakthrough. David Perry, president, CEO and director of Indigo states that agricultural productivity is a fundamental part of the solution, since worldwide agriculture accounts for 70 per cent of all water consumption. “To avoid a potential water gap, we as an industry need to invest in innovations that make our crops more resilient to various climate conditions, thus increasing water use efficiency,” he says. “We must feed more people with less water.”
Perry and his team at Indigo focus on microbes that have evolved in conjunction with plants over millions of years to optimize their health and maximize their productivity. The resulting products complement a plant’s natural processes to improve strength across each stage of plant development, while boosting crop yields.
what does the future hold?
“The next step is to determine if microbes can be produced on a scale that will help Canadian farmers,” says the University of Saskatchewan’s Vujanovic. “A new generation of microbial inoculants which consist of fungal and bacterial partners attached to a plant’s seed and root, are ground-breaking discoveries for innovation and biotechnology. These discoveries will benefit pulses, soybean and canola crops in a variety of ways, improving yield for sustaining and improving agricultural production under the increasing stresses of climate change.”
Indigo’s vice-president of Bioprocess Development and Manufacturing David Easson adds they want to improve plant health and performance by coating seeds with beneficial microbes prior to seeding. “We partner with teams like the Saskatchewan Research Council, the National Research Council and the University of Saskatchewan to identify the right microbes to meet the needs of the growers. We look forward to continue working with Canadian experts so together we can explore how we maximize the promise of this new technology on the Canadian prairies.”
With considerable investments being made by small and large companies alike, a new generation of crop biologics is beginning to emerge to bring these technologies to farms across Saskatchewan, Canada and the world.
To see this story online visit http://biotechnologyfocus.ca/futureagricultural-biologics/
regulators seem Uniquely Focused on regulating industry through
coMpliAncE WitH ADvERtiSinG REGulAtionS
Do you remember racing to the bottom of the cereal box to discover what treasure lied inside? We all have memories of beholding a hockey trading card or a dinosaur that grew in water which gave us a few moments of joy before rushing off to school. Well, Bill S-228 entitled The Child Health Protection Act (the “Bill”)1 may bring an end to the practice of offering a gifts (or in the words of the Bill, consideration) directed to children in exchange for a purchase.
By way of background, it would seem that Canada ranks sixth among industrialized nations in respect of its percentage of children who are obese. On January 25, 2016, the WHO’s Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity2 found that there is evidence that the marketing of unhealthy foods and sugar sweetened beverages has a negative impact on child obesity. In its report, it recommended that any attempt to tackle childhood obesity should include a reduction in the exposure of children to marketing to such products. An so, along comes Bill S-228 which underwent its first reading in the senate on September 27, 2016.
The Bill seeks, inter alia, to make the following amendments to the Food and Drugs Act: • Defining the age for Children: Children are now classified as persons under 13 years of age.
• No labelling, packaging or advertising
to Children: No person may label or package, or advertise any food in a manner that is directed primarily at children. • No Brand promotion: A display or depicting of a food or its label or package or of a brand element (such as a brand name, trademark, trade name, distinguishing guise, logo or slogan) in association with a sponsorship for an activity intended primarily for children, except in respect of sports equipment or other durable goods in support of the event or activity or (ii) a permanent facility that is intended primary for children such as a daycare or school is not permitted. • No Testimonials: No person may, directly or indirectly, promote food by means of a testimonial or an endorsement in a manner that is directed primarily at children.
This includes the depiction of a person , character or animal, whether real or fictional is considered to be a testimonial or an endorsement. Let’s hope Tony the Tiger and Ronald McDonald have a timeshare reserved for retirement. • Prohibited Sales Promotions: No person may offer or provide in exchange for the purchase of a food, any direct or indirect consideration that is intended primarily for children. Consideration includes a gift to a purchaser or third party, a bonus or a right to participate in a game, lottery or contest. The only permissible promotion by testimonial or endorsement is by a public
health authority (or someone acting in collaboration with a public health authority) for educational purposes.
The Bill stands to have repercussions in several sectors of the food industry beyond our beloved cereal prizes including restaurants (Less than Happy Meal, anyone?) and confectionary (Kinder No Surprise), just to name of few. Overall, the approach taken seems paternalistic in that it does not consider the effects of socio-economic status, education, genetic predisposition and parenting, in contributing to childhood obesity in Canada. Instead, the Bill seems to place the burden most heavily on the shoulders of industry and perhaps unfairly so. The Bill seems intent on pushing industry to do more to promote a healthy, active lifestyle in children below the age of 13 despite the positive results shown in 2015 Compliance Report3 issued by Advertising Standards Canada.
It would seem that the Bill is a renewed effort by the government to increase enforcement of advertising standards in Canada. On the prescription drug side, a number of hospitals, natural health product manufacturers, plastic surgeons and pharmaceutical companies found themselves specifically named on Health Canada’s list of advertising enforcement actions made public last January.4 In an effort to increase transparency, Health Canada provided details of over 152 advertising infractions it undertook to enforce in 2015.
The list of infractions included: 1) Complaints regarding the direct-toconsumer advertising of an unauthorized product 2) Complaints regarding advertising of unauthorized claims 3) Complaints regarding the direct-toconsumer advertising of specific products such as Botox, Latisse, Dysport. 4) Complaint regarding the advertising of an unauthorized product to healthcare professionals and formulary officials; 5) Complaint regarding the advertising of an unauthorized product.
In the post Vanessa’s law era, naming names as Health Canada has, may be a nudge to industry that these types of violations are now going to be enforced and taken seriously. Either way, the publicity associated with being included in this list will force several, if not all, manufacturers and license holders to take a good hard look at the types of claims they are making to the public.
While informative of the types of violations that garner attention from the regulatory, namely Health Canada, it equally acts as a hypothetical dunce hat for those who find themselves on the list. More importantly, it may be that the intended purpose for publishing the list is to obtain passive compliance from “perpetrators” (their words not ours) to voluntarily comply with acceptable advertising rules
So how do you keep yourself out of regulator’s line of sight whether you are adverting foods, natural health products, prescription products or some other regulated materials in Canada? You may consider putting into place a few internal checks and balances that can assist in drafting promotional materials that is compliant and cost efficient: • This may be a little obvious (but has been included because of the types of complaints included on the list), make sure your product is approved or has the appropriate licenses required to be sold in Canada. This is particularly relevant to natural health products and neutriceuticals. • When making claims, avoid adjectives in the description of your products, be it cosmetics, food, natural health products, medical devices or drug products. • State the therapeutic benefit or use of the product (if applicable) in simple straightforward language and only if there is quantitative data that can substantiate the therapeutic claim. • In the absence of unequivocal quantitative data, avoid comparative language, in any form. This means, not only avoiding references to other products, but also suggesting that the product is better. • When in doubt, recite the language verbatim in the product labelling currently approved by the relevant regulator. While your marketing department will likely hate you, it will keep you out of hot water with the regulator, be it Health Canada or the Canadian Food
Inspection Agency and the like. • Finally, consider creating an internal advertising committee consisting of members of your regulatory group, marketing group and your legal department. Alternatively, you may consider appointing and training a single individual to be the advertising compliance officer who has access to counsel (either internal or external) to vet materials before they are released to the public. and be accountable for the contents of promotional materials.
references
1. http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Language=E&
Mode=1&DocId=8439399 2. http://www.who.int/end-childhoodobesity/en/ 3. http://adstandards.com/en/childrensi nitiative/2015ComplianceReport.pdf 4. http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/ advert-publicit/complaint-plaintes/ index-eng.php
Christelle Gedeon, Ph.D., Associate Fasken Martineau DuMoulin, LLP
To see this story online visit www.biotechnologyfocus.ca/regulatorsseem-uniquely-focused-on-regulatingindustry-through-compliance-withadvertising-regulations/
The Big data Conundrum
canada must be faster at innovating. This crosses many sectors. From information technology, to biotechnology, to agricultural sciences, to environmental biology, to medical therapeutics, there is a common thread. All of these areas are data intensive. More and more, information is becoming available to help deal with challenges to health, production, the environment and more. It is truly becoming a larger challenge to critically access data, and to completely capitalize on what is being provided. It is the proverbial “Thirsting for Knowledge, Drowning in Information” position.
The move to “big data” is having an immense impact on the life sciences. And it is becoming increasingly difficult to find that nugget of usable information from the reams and reams of available data. There are many outstanding questions now on how we deal with data, such as: How do we access the data? How do we store data and do we have capacity for keeping data? Who owns the data? And more!
Environmental management requires a lot of information. Decisions on how to deal with various challenges requires interpretation of volumes of data. Sometimes decisions can be made with incomplete data with controversial responses. The sources of phosphorus in Lake Erie’s algal blooms are being monitored from point sources, but these actually may not be enough. Cross border acquisition of data is also happening and comes in various forms. Acquiring the amount of data that is required to make a comprehensive decision can be very costly. This would be an instance where the cost of acquiring the data may compromise the veracity of the data.
In agriculture, data is driving farming decisions. For example, global positioning systems, and self-driving tractors and combines are driven by data. Similar to the self driving car which is imminent on the market, there are companies developing the driverless and in fact “cab-less” tractors. Agriculture has embraced self-driving technology, and data can tell you what was planted within a square foot, and also what the harvest was within a specific part of a field. All of this technology is providing farmers critical information for decisions on what fields to plant, when to plant, what to plant and how to maximize production. We are at the point where it is necessary to have the ability to evaluate terrabytes of data in a short window. Nowhere is the data conundrum becoming more acute than in the genomics space. Many species’ full genomes are known and even the human genome can be found online. Capitalizing on plant and animal genomes offer tremendous opportunity to improve the way we develop food products. And it is not just the general production of agricultural products that are the only topics of consideration. Genomics allow us to look into diverse characteristics beyond production. For example, understanding the genomic linkage to aggression in livestock and finding ways to mitigate this could lead to a better environment for animal husbandry. The secondary benefit could also be improved financial return to the farmer because of improved performance.
The study of genomics and data mining could offer tremendous insights into rare diseases. One of the many challenges is related to the phenotypic linkage to the genomic traits. When many diseases have similar symptoms, the ability to effectively mine data for potential solutions will no doubt lead to faster diagnoses and treatment solutions. The immensity of the data that must to be searched could also make the determination of the solution also costly. But, it could potentially be significantly less intrusive and deliver effective solutions in a much more timely manner. Instead of taking years or decades for solutions, our ability to find links through genome mining could be advantageous to many.
Whether you are monitoring the moisture content of a field growing tomatoes, understanding the output traits required for industrial oil production from plants, tracking phosphorus pollution in Lake Erie, or developing solutions to human health issues, use of big data will play a larger and more essential role. Our ability to manage these data will no doubt impact the pace of science and speed of innovation adoption and affect the Canadian competitiveness in the international landscape.
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