European initiatives on phenotyping platforms

There are many interests for Europe to favour the investment in the development of the phenotyping technology:
- Improve breeding techniques and efficiency with an increased genomics understanding and applicability
- Build infrastructure to provide the scientific community with the necessary tools to answer biological question: physiology, stress tolerance, yield components and productivity… that may help to solve future challenges: climate change, biotic and abiotic stresses and thus help to protect European agriculture
- Enhance the link and collaboration between European breeding companies and research consortium through access to infrastructures and collaborations (direct applicability of results / work on European varieties...)
- Boost the development of SME's developing phenotyping infrastructures and technologies and foster jobs and innovation in this field
- Finally Europe has probably a unique chance to become the world leader on "Phenomics" technology as Europe already possesses many world leading groups in plant phenotyping
In the last few years, projects with strong phenotyping components have been funded under the European Commission Framework Programme 7 (http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/home_en.html), for example the DROPS project (www.drops-project.eu) under the Cooperation programme, which aims at developing novel methods and strategies for genetic yield improvement under dry environments and for enhanced plant water-use efficiency, or the opening of a call under the "Infrastructure" capacities programme in 2010, funding the development of a "European plant phenotyping network".
The presentation will remind the strategic interests for Europe to develop a strong Phenotyping community and the different projects that have been funded under the FP7 programme of DG Research&Innovation.

Download PDF