Thomas “Tom” Brutnell is the Chief Scientific Officer at McClintock, LLC. As CSO, Thomas Brutnell works with clients on structuring collaborations to deliver best-in-class AI Breeding services and support.

1. The Role of
Genomics in
Sustainable
Agriculture

2. Thomas “Tom” Brutnell is the Chief Scientific Officer at
McClintock, LLC. As CSO, Thomas Brutnell works with
clients on structuring collaborations to deliver best-in-
class AI Breeding services and support. In 2018, he
founded Viridis Genomics Consulting, focused largely
on consulting within the academic and industrial
agricultural biotechnology communities, providing
advice on genomics and genome engineering.

3. Although the green revolution brought billions out of poverty,
it came at a cost. High levels of fertilizer and energy intensive
agricultural practices contributed to environmental pollution.
Today, climate change and the degradation of agricultural
lands bring additional challenges to farmers across the globe.
As we have seen in the recent war in Ukraine, supply chain
disruptions to the food supply can have immediate and dire
consequences.

4. Fortunately,plant breeding companiesare nowequipped with
a new tool for engineering genomes,known as gene editing.
Through gene editing,scientistscan preciselychange single
genes in the genome opening the door to much more rapid
advances in crop performance.Current gene editing programs
are aiming to improve the flavor and nutrition of vegetables
and pulses, increase yield,improve pest resistance and make
plants more resilient to drought,floodsand heat waves.

5. In addition to this engineering tool,scientist can also tap
a wealth of genome sequence and phenotypic datato
acceleratethe breeding process.Throughadvanced AI-
driven breeding methodsincluding genomicselection,
multi-trait crossing prediction and ideotype breeding,
McClintockis now accelerating the breeding process
itself.