Duane Hauck

I’m Duane Hauck assistant director with the NDSU Extension Service. I’d like to visit with you for just a couple of minutes about NDSU’s agriculture involvement with biotech crop research. We feel that it’s important that the North Dakota Agriculture Experiment station be engaged with biotech crop research. Not only because of the future innovation possibilities that this technology provides, but also because of the impact it could have on North Dakota agriculture. We also feel that it is the NDSU Extension Service’s role to help educate the public not only about this technology, but also on the social, economic and ethical ramifications of this technology. As we engage in this work we fully support and recognize that there are other crop production and marketing systems that do not fully support this technology at this point in time. Here at NDSU, we are fully committed to maintain our support for all the various crop production and marketing systems. Because of that, we have looked at taking extra steps with our research program to ensure that as we engage in biotech crop research that these other crop production and marketing systems are supported as well. We have adjusted our research protocols so that we continue to develop new crop varieties that enhance farming food and quality in the environment. And at the same time promote a co-existence between the various crop production and marketing systems. In our research protocols we will continue to develop genetically improved, environmentally adapted crops and in some cases this may involve biotech crop research. We’re looking at managing our foundation seed stock program so that we can ensure pure seed to be available in the future for all crop production and marketing systems. When it comes to doing field research with biotech crops our standards far and exceed those identified through federal guidelines such as, isolation differences, the dedication of separate equipment and so forth will all be followed to the fullest extent. We will also be engaging with the institutional biosafety committee here at NDSU to give extra oversight to the research that we do involving regulated biotech crops and we will follow the national institute of health guidelines when it comes to the containment, the handling and the storage of biotech crops. So our message is that here at NDSU we feel it’s important for us to continue to be engaged in biotech crop research, but at the same time we fully recognize that there are other crop production and marketing systems that have a place here in North Dakota. Our organic system, our sustainable ag. system, the non biotech crop marketing opportunities that exist. So as we continue to engage in research involving biotech crops we will be following protocols again that ensure that non-biotech crops will still have a place within the North Dakota agriculture experiment station research program, and also within North Dakota agriculture and the NDSU Extension Service we will continue to conduct educational programs that will not only educate people, students, farmers, consumers on the technology of genetic engineering, and talk about the pros and cons of this technology as we work ahead into the future.