Page 13 - Breeding Edge ebook
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change leaves some farming regions with less water. The means selecting less-thirsty types of
crops and breeding more drought resistant varieties.
• Limiting expansion of croplands to preserve forests and other wild areas.
• Improving plants’ nutritional quality: More nutrition per calorie makes the best use of resources.
• Helping crops to adapt: Breeders need to help them adjust to rising temperatures and increasingly
volatile weather.
• Conserving plant and animal genetic diversity: The broader our genetic diversity, the more
resilient our crops can be against the next disease or natural disaster.
Hirst, meanwhile, isn’t in the life sciences arena, but has a view about GE, the new laboratory magic
entering the ancient plant and animal breeding pipeline.
“I’m all for developing new versions of our plants that may be better able to survive in the climate
changes that are already in progress. We desperately need more plants that are adapted to drier
and less stable climatic situations as soon as possible – shorter growing seasons, less dependency
on irrigated water, stronger resistance to drought.”
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