Biomass For the Future (BFF) is one of the 8 winning projects chosen in the second call for Biotechnology and Bioresources projects in the Health and Biotechnology excellence category of the Investments in the Future programme.

The BFF project is led by the Jean-Pierre Bourdin Institute (IJPB) at the INRA centre in Versailles-Grignon, one of the largest European research institutes in the field of plant biology. The project pools the skills and expertise of 22 partners (9 public laboratories, 1 technical institute, 10 SMEs and large groups working in biotechnology, agronomy, seed, construction composites and materials, and 2 urban municipalities) which are required to design and implement an infrastructure to support the production and industrial use of miscanthus and sorghum biomass in the pioneering communities. BFF aims to tackle the environmental and social issues surrounding the production and use of biomass to foster the development of tomorrow's green industries:

• Develop crops intended for non-food biomass in France by creating new varieties and farming systems for miscanthus (northern France) and sorghum (southern France) which have a low environmental impact and suitable composition for industrial applications; and
• Structure the entire industrial value chain for the biomaterials and bioenergy sectors by promoting the organisation of production systems at the local level with the participation of industrial firms and stakeholders in the regions concerned.

The project proposes innovative multidisciplinary approaches that combine modelling and systems biology to characterise the architecture, metabolism and composition of the plants best suited to biomass production. The project will help to reclaim 'marginal' farmland and to develop new, local green economies while involving all the stakeholders in a given geographical area.

Contact information :
Coordinator : Herman Höfte - herman.hofte@inra.fr
Project manager : Laure Trannoy - laure.trannoy@inra.fr
www.biomassforthefuture.org

The ProBio3 project sponsored by INRA started on 1 July 2012; its scientific oversight is handled by the Microbiological Engineering, Systemic Analysis and Process Innovation team at the Processes and Biological Systems Engineering Laboratories (LISBP), an INRA-CNRS joint research unit at INSA Toulouse.It seeks to develop a new biofuel production chain: BIOcatalytic PROduction of lipid BIOproducts from renewal raw materials and industrial by-products: BIOkerosene application. This 90-month innovative project garnered an investment of €24.6 million and is receiving €8 million in assistance from the General Commission for Investment. This project is a fundamental priority of the aviation industry with the strong growth in kerosene projected in the coming years. Its objectives are to: Identify non-utilised renewable or industrial resources suited to the nutritional demands of oleaginous micro-organisms; Develop intensive bioprocesses to produce lipids for biokerosene use; and Demonstrate the feasible of the sector (m3) with an evaluation of the environmental, economic and societal impacts.

The expected impacts are: Advances in the fundamental knowledge about lipid metabolism in oleaginous micro-organisms and micro-algae by analogy;Acceleration in the development of industrial strains and fermentation strategies by high-throughput technologies;A realistic study of scaling for an industrial pilot project;Competitive advantages for a leadership position in the microbial production of lipids to meet a 2Mt BioJetFuel annual target by 2020; andJob creation along the entire supply chain.This project includes:Eight academic partners (LISBP, IGM/UPSud, MICALIS, IJPB, IMFT, Toulouse White Biotechnology, SQPOV, Toulouse School of Economics); four industrial firms (EADS, Tereos Syral, Airbus, Sofiproteol), the IFPen research centre; and three national technical centres (CREOL, CVG, ITERG). They will lead seven working groups with their interdisciplinary expertise in an array of fields, including life sciences, process engineering and economic and social sciences.

Contact information :
Coordinator : Carole Molina-Jouve - Carole.Jouve@insa-toulouse.fr
Project manager : Laure Akomia - laure.akomia@inra.fr
http://www.probio3.fr/

The mission of international farming is to ensure food security while replacing fossil fuels, reducing its environmental impact and adapting to climate change. While France and some European countries are addressing the genetic aspect of this challenge through genomic-only selection, a growing number of major agricultural countries are turning to transgenesis to expand the pool of available genes. Furthermore, transgenesis is already an indispensable technology for French scientists and seed breeders to remain competitive at the global level.

Recent advances in transgenesis now offer answers to some concerns raised by citizens. In particular, the emergence of nuclease technology now makes it possible to alter plant genomes with very high accuracy. In this context, it is a strategic priority to maintain a high level of transgenesis expertise, to participate actively in the debate about these new technologies and to demonstrate their applicability and their value in a large number of cultivated species. The project, coordinated by the Plant Reproduction and Development joint research unit (UMR RDP) at INRA Lyons, will provide French scientists and breeders with cutting-edge expertise, along with the corresponding biological material and intellectual property, and will pave the way for high-throughput functional genomics capable of meeting the challenges that must be overcome. The biological material produced will either be taken directly to the seed market or optimised upstream. The technical information and ethical framework presented to French citizens and legislators could, in time, lead to an easing of the regulatory burden for experts and applicants. To achieve these objectives, the GENIUS project will bring together 15 public and private partners, including 9 public research units that work in the life sciences and social sciences and 6 private sector companies that specialise in breeding and biotechnology. This consortium will create synergies and reorganise entities – until now were focused on a single species or scope of application – into a real community united by a common technical objective. The 8-year project started on 1 September 2012. It will receive total funding in the amount of €21.3 million (including an ANR grant for €6 million).

Contact information :
Coordinator : Peter Rogowsky – peter.rogowsky@ens-lyon.fr
Project manager : Laure Trannoy – laure.trannoy@inra.fr
www.genius-project.fr

AMAIZING combines genotyping and phenotyping approaches that harness high-throughput analytical techniques to pinpoint the factors involved in properties of agronomic interest, such as yield, quality and biotic and abiotic stress tolerance. Ultimately, the project will lead to the development of breeding tools and methods that can be used directly by industry stakeholders to reinforce the competitiveness of the maize breeding and growing sectors in France.The project began on 1 October 2011.

Contact information :
Coordinator : Alain Charcosset – alain.charcosset@inra.fr
Project manager : Agathe Renard – agathe.renard@inra.fr
www.amaizing.fr