New International Partnership Aims to Increase Wheat Yields

The International Wheat Yield Partnership (IWYP), a group that aims to increase wheat yields by 50 percent in 2034, was launched at the Borlaug Summit on Wheat for Food Security in Ciudad Obregón, Mexico. The program brings together research funders, international aid agencies, foundations, companies, and major wheat research organizations, to serve as unique vehicle for new discoveries and their speedy incorporation into wheat crops grown in different parts of the world. It also aims to stimulate new research and make scientific discoveries available to farmers in developing and developed countries.

BBSRC Deputy Chief Executive Steve Visscher, Chair of the IWYP board of founding partners said, "We need a collective global approach to make more wheat available." He added that IWYP members will enable scientific breakthroughs that are out of reach via existing mechanisms.

The partnership's initiators include the UK's Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food of Mexico (SAGARPA) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

For more information about this new partnership, read the news release at: http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/news/food-security/2014/140326-pr-international-partnership-wheats-potential.aspx.