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Indo-Australian JV for potato seed production

Our Bureau

NEW DELHI, Oct. 18

CHAMBAL Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd (CFCL) and Technico Pty Ltd of Australia have formed a 21-million Australian dollar (around Rs 52 crore) joint venture for the production and marketing of high quality-technituber seed and early generation seed potat oes in India.

The Australia-India venture called Chambal Agritech Ltd has already finalised the construction of a 6.1 million Australian dollar (around Rs 14.66 crore) technituber production facility at Chandigarh. The facility will initially have the design capacity to produce 18 million seeds per year. These seeds can be used in the production of significant volumes of early generation seed and commercial potatoes.

Chambal Agritech plans to sell the seeds to the 27-million tonne strong Indian potato market. China is the largest potato producer in the world with a production of 44 million tonnes. Australia produces 1.4 million tonnes.

Technituber technology is a fast multiplying method that delivers affordable early generation seed for all potato varieties. The New South Wales (NSW)-based Technico has developed expertise in the technituber technology, according to Australia-India Focu s, a trade publication from the Australian High Commission in India.

According to Mr David McDonald, Chief Executive Officer of Technico, the scientists of the company have demonstrated the large-scale production of these high quality seeds under controlled environmental conditions and also the benefits of the technology.

The company claimed that the leading-edge technituber technology was far superior to any other production technology currently practiced and available in the market. By forming a joint venture, it planned to bring a paradigm shift in the way potatoes wer e produced in India, he said.

In addition to Australia, technituber seed production facilities are operational in China, the US and Mexico. India would be the fifth country to venture into this high technology. What are the advantages of this collaboration to India? According to Dr K .K. Birla, Chairman of Chambal Fertilisers, the joint venture would mean several benefits. Some of them include mass production capabilities, reduction in the number of field generations needed to produce adequate quantities of certified seeds, quick int roduction of new varieties, better seed size and minimise risks of field related diseases.