SCA has become a partner in SE-technology and in a pilot plant developed and operated by SweTree Technologies. With SE-technology, more seedlings can be quickly and efficiently produced from the best seed material from forest breeding. Source: Timberbiz
SweTree Technologies is running a pilot project to develop automated seedling production via Somatic Embryogenesis (SE) together with the forest companies Stora Enso, Sveaskog, Södra and Holmen. SCA has now also entered the project and become a partner in the SE-technology and in the pilot plant developed and operated by SweTree Technologies.
So far, development has focused on spruce seedlings, but with SCA’s involvement, SweTree has also started the development of SE-technology for pine. This is done jointly with all participating companies, in parallel with the development that is underway for spruce.
“We are very pleased to have SCA on board with the SE-project. SweTree is now bringing together the five major Swedish forest industry companies in the development of this important and revolutionary technology. This means that we are well equipped to take our SE-technology all the way to a commercial facility for production of SE seedlings on an industrial scale,” says Christofer Rhén, CEO of SweTree Technologies.
“We have collaborated with SweTree for a long time and now it was time to take the next step. This is an exciting development project with great potential, and which is at the forefront of research in terms of the production of the best forest seedlings. With an increased degree of breeding, we can produce seedlings that grow even better and thus capture more carbon dioxide. We also get access to more renewable raw materials to replace fossil products with. In this way, our forests can contribute with even greater climate benefit,” says Thomas Vestman, Head of SCA’s seedling business NorrPlant.
SweTree Technologies has been working for several years to develop the automated SE-technology. SE is a vegetative propagation method, with which seedlings based on the best seed material from forest breeding can be quickly and efficiently produced in large quantities. This technological leap enables commercial seedlings with higher growth and resistance to diseases and pests, which is positive for both the forest economy and the environment.
