LUDWIGSHAFEN, Germany, March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- In this Podcast you will learn about how plant biotechnology can help to make crops more tolerant against climate stress.

Climatic conditions such as heat or cold and rain or drought can determine whether a harvest turns out well or badly. Because whenever these conditions are not optimal, plants also find themselves in a stressful situation, literally. On top of that the reality today is that by now the farmer's work goes far beyond the mere production of foodstuffs. Through the growing demand for renewable resources production in a more and more efficient manner is needed. The question is: Will the traditional farming industry be able to master these challenges it now faces? Established aids such as fertilizers, pesticides and conventional crop cultivation methods are as essential as ever. However, these methods on their own accord will not succeed in producing as much as is needed. One solution could be plant biotechnology. With its help BASF Plant Science develops for example stress tolerant crops. In a targeted manner genes from other plants that already possess the desired traits are inserted into agricultural plants such as corn, soya, canola or cotton. This enables them to better handle stress factors like drought or cold for example.

Listen to the audio reportage with the experts Dr. Jonathan Bryant and Dr. Juergen Logemann of BASF Plant Science.

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BASF is the world's leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from oil and gas to chemicals, plastics, performance products, agricultural products and fine chemicals. As a reliable partner BASF helps its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF has more than 95,000 employees and posted sales of almost EUR58 billion in 2007. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at http://www.basf.com.

A Podcast is available at http://www.presseportal.de/meldung/1152914 and http://www.presseportal.de/link/multimedia.mecom.eu Editorial contact for plant biotechnology related questions: Dr. Susanne Benner BASF Plant Science Telefon: +49-621-60-28104 Telefax: +49-621-60-28202 E-Mail: susanne.benner@basf.com Editorial contact for Podcast: For the UK: BASF plc Chris Wilson Corporate Communications Phone: +44-161-488-5616 Fax: +44-161-488-4133 E-Mail: chris.wilson@basf.com For the US: BASF Corporation Betsy Arnone Corporate Communications Phone: +1-973-245-7865 Fax: +1-973-245-6714 E-Mail: betsy.arnone@basf.com For Europe: BASF SE Rainer Mueller-Mueffelmann Corporate Innovation Communications Phone: +49-621-60-41040 Fax: +49-621-60-20548 E-Mail: podcast@basf.com

Editorial contact for plant biotechnology related questions: Dr. Susanne Benner, BASF Plant Science, Telefon: +49-621-60-28104, Telefax: +49-621-60-28202, E-Mail: susanne.benner@basf.com; Editorial contact for Podcast: For the UK: BASF plc, Chris Wilson, Corporate Communications, Phone: +44-161-488-5616, Fax: +44-161-488-4133, E-Mail: chris.wilson@basf.com; For the US: BASF Corporation, Betsy Arnone, Corporate Communications, Phone: +1-973-245-7865, Fax: +1-973-245-6714, E-Mail: betsy.arnone@basf.com; For Europe: BASF SE, Rainer Mueller-Mueffelmann, Corporate Innovation Communications, Phone: +49-621-60-41040, Fax: +49-621-60-20548, E-Mail: podcast@basf.com