Genus contributes to food security with Chinese ventures

Global agricultural biotechnology firm Genus can play an important role in attaining global food security by applying genetic improvement technology to livestock more vigorously in China. With about 600 million pigs slaughtered annually in China, the country accounts for half of the worldwide production and consumption of pork. This exceeds the combined production in the United States and all of Europe.

"A key way to solve the issue around insufficient production of animal protein is through technology," says Karim Bitar, CEO of Genus. "Technology could mean vaccines or information technology systems, but genetics is the core way of doing it."

Genus' breeding stock is the source of the best genetics for the dairy, beef and pork sectors globally. Advanced biotechnology enables the company to continuously improve animal breeds to suit evolving market needs. These include lean meat for a healthier diet and feed-efficient livestock, which raises the quality and volume of farm output. Genus collaborates with farmers and food producers to respond to such trends.

"There is strong interest in China to access our dairy and pork genetics, and to collaborate with us, because we are viewed as the gold standard," Bitar says.

Genus has established joint ventures with leading integrated pork producers in Shaanxi and Yunnan. For example, the partnership with Shaanxi Yangling Besun Agricultural Group will underpin the production of 10 million slaughtered pigs annually from a state-of-the-art nucleus farm. Genus manages the nucleus farm to ensure world-class practices and intellectual property protection.

"We have a strong desire to expand our relationships with large commercial and enterprise pork and dairy producers in China," Bitar says.