Developed by the CSIRO and agricultural business Nufarm, the canola will offer a cost-effective plant-based omega-3 option.
It is hoped the approvals will help relieve the need for fish as a omega-3 source, an essential fatty-acid required in the human diet.
Food Standard Australia New Zealand （FSANZ） approved the canola for human consumption within Australia and the Australian Office of Gene Technology Regulator announced that the canola has been approved for cultivation and use in animal feed.
Nufarm Managing Director and CEO, Greg Hunt, said the Australian approval of the canola represents a very significant milestone in the project.
“The Nuseed project team, and our collaboration partners, have met a major objective in bringing pioneering technology form concept stage to first approval in a relatively short period and are to be congratulated on this milestone,” Hunt said.
Nuseed Global General Manager Innovation and Strategy, Andy Thomas, said the rest of 2018 in Australia will be used to keep focusing in research related to field trials.
Work in taking the canola to other countries is already taking place with Nuseed receiving approval for a scale up of pre commercial production in the US.
“We remain on track with our plan to commence commericialsation in 2019, with production programs planned in the US （pending US approval），” Thomas said.
