On 23 November 2011 CIMMYT-El Batán welcomed six hybrid wheat researchers from China. Changping Zhao, Yiqiang Ge, Mingshan You, Mujun Yang, Shengrong Li, and Shengquan Zhang came to discuss the advances of wheat photoperiod and thermo-sensitive male sterility (PTMS) systems in China. In the last 20 years, approximately 5000 different PTMS lines have been bred, with BS and C49S now being successfully used in hybrid wheat breeding. Seven PTMS hybrid wheat cultivars have been approved by national or provincial governments, with 500 tons of seed now being produced on 700 ha. Progress is also being made on hybrid seed production, and it is now possible to obtain 3.75 tons/ha. The discussion was hosted by Hans Braun, Director, Global Wheat Program, and attended by CIMMYT scientists and eight Chinese visiting scientists.
Capacity development 