Egypt aims to increase wheat productivity by 33% thanks to atomic energy

CAIRO – 23 August 2022: Egypt’s Atomic Energy Authority succeeded recently in expanding the peaceful uses of atomic energy in different fields, which sends a clear message to the world on the country’s keenness to adhere to standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The Nuclear Research Center of the Atomic Energy Authority succeeded in discovering a new mutation of wheat that was developed inside the center, which achieves an increase in wheat productivity by up to 33% over the traditional local product.

This comes in a bid to Egypt’s efforts to benefit from this technology to serve society and achieve safety, and expand the peaceful uses of atomic energy in the medical, agricultural, health and industrial fields.

The Atomic Energy Authority began working on the strategic project since 2002, and the scientific plan was to elicit new agricultural booms in Egypt to confront climate changes.

Mutation breeding is the fastest way to confront the problem that all countries of the world suffer from, which is the narrow genetic base of crops, and the reason for which many countries seek to obtain such distinguished genetic assets.

The most important characteristic of these mutations of wheat produced by the authority is that it has a different genetic base, which helps in its ability to resist diseases and bear adverse environmental conditions, as well as increase the productivity per unit area by 33% over the current commercial varieties, and it is completely safe in terms of food safety.

The Atomic Energy Authority is currently conducting the registration stages for obtaining a permit to trade them as new items in the Egyptian market, especially since all the tests carried out by the Items Registration Committee are the same tests carried out by the authorities that produce mutations.

It is worth noting that the mutation is exposed to a dose of radiation using gamma rays, which is completely safe for human health. They have no side effects, and these mutations have been tested and ensured that their quality is superior to that of the traditional product.

In the medical field, Dr. Nashwa Kamal Radwan, researcher at the National Center for Radiation Research and Technology and head of the radioactive amino tissue project, succeeded in developing a production laboratory at the highest levels of safety and quality that comply with international standards for the production of amniotic tissue extracted from the placenta at the Atomic Energy Authority, where experimental production was carried out.

The product has proven excellent efficacy compared to traditional methods of treatment and compared to competing products internationally. These successes have been proven in scientific journals and international conferences. These researches were recorded on the official US website to record clinically innovative successes.

The amniotic fluid was tried as a treatment to remove facial wrinkles and acne scars, and the results were impressive. The experimental production of the amino tissue project at the Atomic Energy Authority was successful with all researchers who tested it clinically and expressed their desire to use the product, whose cost in America is 700 dollars for one patch while it can be saved in Egypt, at a price of only 250 pounds.

Gamma irradiation units services are provided in the center’s locations in Cairo (Nasr City) and Alexandria, and they are the only units in the Arab Republic of Egypt that provide irradiation services such as treating and preserving food by radiation.

One of the goals is to achieve food security through:

1- Preventing storage operations in onions, garlic and potatoes, which are strategic crops, in order to reduce the amount of wastage.

2- Eliminate spoiling microbes that cause corruption and damage to meat, pourtly and fish, which works to maintain their quality.

3- Achieving food safety by eliminating pathogenic bacteria in food, fungi that secrete mycotoxins, and parasites harmful to human health.

5- Enhancing exports abroad by getting rid of pests and insects that infect many foods (fresh fruits and vegetables, dates, grains...etc), which facilitates and overcomes plant quarantine requirements when exporting them.

The number of companies that request this service is about 440 companies, of whom about 60% are medical supplies and 40% are food products.

The National Center for Radiation Research and Technology in Egypt also produces blood irradiation reagents, which are used in blood irradiation and some of its components for tumor patients.

These reagents are used by sticking them on blood bags or plasma or some of its other components during the irradiation process using gamma rays or x-rays in order to visually verify the irradiation process.