Agriculture committee  Different countries have different options open to them with regard to biomass. South America is obviously focusing on sugar cane. In the United States, corn could prove to be their best source of biomass energy. As for Canada, we are very rich in cellulose. However, cellulose te

Agriculture committee  The collaboration is essentially occurring at the level of scientific organizations. As I said, we hosted a European community delegation yesterday—the Europeans have implemented funding programs worth 53 billion euros, or $70 billion.

Agriculture committee  We launched a new set of hirings in January. There are 17 positions being staffed right now. Scientists are being recruited. We are relaunching the hiring of scientists, in terms of managers travelling the country rather than spending time on the ground. We have reassigned th

Agriculture committee  We'll be happy to provide that. The website will be relaunched in June with that information as well.

Agriculture committee  The Science and Innovation Strategy announced by the minister last year, in May 2006, sets out, for the first time in decades, a strategic orientation. Discussions are also currently under way on the Agriculture Policy Framework. Consultations are currently being held. The Agricu

Agriculture committee  The Agricultural Bioproducts Innovation Program, the ABIP, launched by the minister, has received 98 funding requests over the past few days. It is a very successful program and has a $145 million budget. Given that we received almost $1 billion in funding requests last week, it

Agriculture committee  I do not know of any research that we do at AAFC that would pose a threat to the safety of either the food supply or the environment. Any product that is released in Canada has to meet safety standards, it has to be reviewed, and even if the research was taking place, those produ

Agriculture committee  That's quite a bit of ground to cover there.

Agriculture committee  Yes, thank you. Are we abandoning the primary research in favour of value-added products--the new research, if you wish? The potato grading still continues. The wheat grading continues. These are the bread and butter, so to speak, of farmers or producers. These varieties produce

Agriculture committee  This is the focus of the work at the INH, the Institute for Nutrisciences and Health, in Charlottetown, where we embark on this partnership with both NRC and the University of Prince Edward Island. Scientists are being recruited and staff is being put in place at the INH, as we s

Agriculture committee  I cannot tell you where companies are with that technology. I can only tell you what was announced publicly by those companies. The last information I have, and it's public information, is that Monsanto was not continuing the terminator seed technology. I do not know what they ar

Agriculture committee  No.

Agriculture committee  We see innovation as being a combination of the interactions of research, market demand, market opportunities internationally, the venture capital community, the availability of highly qualified personnel, a regulatory framework, and a policy framework that makes innovation work

Agriculture committee  You're right, people are concerned about the quality of the food, the link between food, nutrition, and health. The question of genetic use restriction technology, the GURTs, was significantly debated some years ago. The technology was initially proposed by one company, Monsanto.

Agriculture committee  How does that relate to food safety and composition? You would have to put that question to Health Canada.