AGTECH

With the adoption of big data, artificial intelligence (“AI”) and precision agriculture, the AgTech Division is envisaged to provide total solutions and services to our Group’s core agribusiness in optimising yield, improving operating efficiency, enabling traceability and enhancing sustainability.

The AgTech Division comprises the technology-based ACGT Sdn Bhd (“ACGT”) and Genting AgTech Sdn Bhd (“GAT”), its seed producing partner. Both ACGT and GAT were accorded BioNexus status by the Malaysian Biotechnology Corporation Sdn Bhd in 2006 and 2009 respectively.

ACGT has successfully completed sequencing three genomes; the oil palm, jatropha and Ganoderma. These genomes, as well as ACGT’s R&D programme has helped better understand the genetics of oil palm yield potential and other traits. It has also contributed to the creation of ACGT’s Titanium Platform Technology, the industry’s most-complete oil palm reference genome.

ACGT’s Titanium Platform Technology also contributed towards the development of markers for the prediction of high yielding oil palm planting materials. Palms screened with these markers have been planted in GENP’s estates for validation. Such markers have the potential to be applicable for the selection of oil palm planting materials with superior yield for planting and breeding, thus addressing the industry’s demand for higher yielding oil palm.

ACGT won the ASOCIO (Asian-Oceanian Computing Industry Organisation) Outstanding User Organisation Award in 2015.

A Scientific Advisory Panel (“SAP”) has been formed to provide strategic scientific and technical advice on ACGT’s various ongoing R&D programmes. The 4-member SAP, selected based on their professional qualifications and expertise in the respective fields namely biostatistics, metagenomics, breeding and seed production, will provide advice on trends and directions relating to ACGT’s R&D programmes, and commercialisation for enhancing value creation of the oil palm. We believe the SAP, aside from complementing ACGT's R&D initiatives, is also integral to its success.

SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY PANEL

Associate Professor Dr Chew Fook Tim

Background:
BSc (Hons): Universiti Putra Malaysia , Malaysia
PhD: National University of Singapore, Singapore
 
Current Positions:
Vice Dean, Faculty of Science, National University of Singapore
Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore
R&D Consultant & Scientific Advisor to Olam International, First Resources and several others
Editorial Board of the Journal of Physiological Anthropology, Topic Associate Editor, Frontiers in Plant Science, Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
Chairman, Academic Advisory Board for the School of Life Sciences, Management Development Institute of Singapore
Governing Board Member of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Studies and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO)
Governing Board Member of the Southeast Asian Regional Centre for Tropical Biology (BioTrop) Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO)
 
Past Experiences:
Scientific Consultant and Advisor to Certisource Timber Asia Pacific, Double Helix Tracking Technologies, and several other start-ups
 
Expertise/Research Interests:
Genetics, Functional Genomics, Marker Assisted Breeding and Genomic Selection of Important Agronomic Traits in Major Commercial Crops
Genetics of Complex Traits & Diseases
Soil and Skin Microbiome
Epidemiology and Genetics of Skin and Allergic Diseases
Cohort Studies and Biomarker Evaluation

Professor Rebecca W. Doerge

Background:
BSc: University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
MSc: University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
PhD: North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, USA
Post-doc: Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
 
Current Positions:
Glen de Vries Dean of the Mellon College of Science, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
Joint faculty appointments in the Department of Biological Sciences in the Mellon College of Science and the Department of Statistics in the Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
 
Past Experiences:
Trent and Judith Anderson Distinguished Professor of Statistics, Purdue University.
Professor of Agronomy, Purdue University.
President's Fellow on Big Data and Simulation.
Department of Statistics, Head, Purdue University.
 
Expertise/Research Interests:
Professor Doerge's research program is focused on Statistical Bioinformatics, an interdisciplinary component of bioinformatics that brings together many scientific disciplines for the purpose of asking, answering, and disseminating biologically-interesting information in the quest to understand the ultimate function of DNA and epigenomic associations.

Professor Patrick du Jardin

Background:
MSc: Agricultural University of Gembloux
PhD: Agricultural University of Gembloux
 
Current Positions:
Professor and Head of the Plant Biology Laboratory at Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liege, Belgium
Delegate of the Belgian Competent Authority within the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) on Plant Biostimulants
External expert for the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA, Parma, Italy)
 
Past Experiences:
Dean of Faculty between October 2007 and September 2009
Consultant for the European Commission : issued 2 reports (2012 and 2014) on plant biostimulants in the framework of a future EC fertilisers regulation.
Member of the ethical committees of the French institutes INRA and CIRAD, on ethics of agricultural innovation
Elected Chairman (between 2003 and 2006) of the research network “Crop Biotechnology, plant breeding and food security” funded by the Agence universitaire de la Francophonie
Scientific cooperation with the Agricultural Ministry of Tunisia on the biotechnology of Date Palm
Past invited professor at the Business School of the University of Liège, at the Royal Academy of Sciences, Humanities and Arts of Belgium, and abroad in the framework of inter-university programs
 
Expertise/Research Interests:
Biological interactions between plant roots and their soil environment; characterization of allelochemical compounds produced by plants
Mechanisms of action of microbial and non-microbial biostimulants in crop plants
Post-harvest biology of the potato (molecular physiology of ageing and dormancy) and other tuber crops

Professor Soh Aik Chin

Background:
BAgSc (Hons): University of Malaya, Malaysia
MAgSc: University of Malaya, Malaysia
PhD: Oregon State University, USA
Fellow of Academy of Sciences Malaysia, International Society of Oil Palm Breeders, Malaysian Oil Scientist & Technologist Association.
Malaysia-Toray Science Foundation Outstanding Scientist Award
Lead Editor & Co-author in Oil Palm Breeding, Genetics & Genomics book, 2017 CRC Press and more than 100 publications.
 
Current Positions:
Honorary Professor at The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus since 2007.
Advisor (previously Research Theme Leader in Breeding & Agronomy) in the international crop research center, Crops For The Future.
 
Past Experiences:
CEO and Research Director supervising over 30 research scientists at Applied Agricultural Resources Sdn Bhd (AAR).
 
Expertise/Research Interests:
Breeding, genetics and biotechnology of tropical crops with experiences in oil palm, chilli pepper, maize, papaya and, cacao.
Breeding, agronomy and crop physiology particularly with respect to resource (light, water, nutrients, gas, labour) use efficiencies in cropping (mono/mixed/intercropping) systems to adapt and mitigate against climate change effects.
Renewable energy production through biomass/biofuel crops.
Varietal and agronomic development of underutilized plant species.
High tech agriculture.
Field experimentation and applied statistics


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