A new 42-month research and development project has been launched to help provide an opportunity to tap into the wealth of unexploited European mineral resources

A genetic mechanism that could stop the spread of a ‘devastating’ disease threatening wheat crops has been identified by scientists working at Durham University.

Professor Anne Glover has said that the scientific consensus is that GM crops are safe, despite being accused by NGOs of presenting “one-sided, partial opinions” in the debate.

An organisation encouraging farmers to become involved in research projects has said that more opportunities for undertaking research are available under Horizon 2020.

Scientists have announced they have discovered a new way to increase crop yields.

Twenty leading European plant scientists have signed an open letter calling for the use of GM crops in order to meet European agricultural targets.

Scientists at the University of Manchester hope a major breakthrough could lead to more effective methods for detoxifying dangerous pollutants such as PCBs and dioxins.

EuropaBio – the European Association for Bioindustries – has announced the top five biotech SMEs in Europe, who will compete to win the fifth annual Most Innovative EU Biotech SME Award.

The Bio-based Industries Joint Technology Initiative has been launched.

SusChem, the European Technology Platform for Sustainable Chemistry, is celebrating ten years of research and innovation in Europe with a stakeholder event in Brussels.

The new UK Industrial Biotechnology Catalyst funding programme has been launched.

Dr Franz Bigler, of the International Organisation for Biological Control, outlines his thoughts and opinions on the IPM general principles, insect-resistant GM crops and Horizon 2020.

The UK’s Institute of Food Research has welcomed the government’s agri-tech strategy. The investment aims to make the UK a world leader in the pivotal role science and technology plays in delivering nutritious food.

A new €3.8bn PPP for bio-based industries in Europe, aimed at ensuring smart, sustainable and inclusive economic growth, has been adopted by the European Commission.

The EAMBES has released a position paper on Horizon 2020, calling for the inclusion of biomedical engineering the framework programme.

EuropaBio, the continent’s bioindustry association, has launched a collection of films demonstrating how biotechnology can create a more vibrant, sustainable and competitive EU bioeconomy.

The cabinet of European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, is understood to have been heavily divided in the run-up to agreeing new legislation on EU biofuels.

Director of research at the French National Institute for Agricultural Research, Françoise Lescourret, outlines the background to the FP7 PURE project and the hopes for IPM research under Horizon 2020.

The Agri-food and Biosciences Institute in Northern Ireland is commended by European United Left/Nordic Green Left Martina Anderson MEP for encouraging applications for Horizon 2020 funding.

Despite potentially more Horizon 2020 funding, bio-industry developments could still be limited according to Nathalie Moll of EuropaBio, the industry body for Europe’s biotechnology industries.