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Transforming Agriculture: The Role of Biotechnology in Feeding the World

Biotechnology is the use of living organisms, cells, or biological processes to develop technologies and products that improve the quality of life and the environment. It involves the manipulation of biological systems to create new or improved products, processes, and services for human use. Biotechnology can be applied to a wide range of fields, including agriculture, medicine, energy, and environmental science.

 

This technology utilizes varied biomolecular and cellular procedures in order to develop products and technologies that ultimately assist in advancing human lives as well as the health of our planet.  It encompasses techniques such as genetic engineering, fermentation, and tissue culture, and is used to create products such as vaccines, biodegradable plastics, and biofuels.

 

There is no area of human activity more basic to society than a sustainable agricultural, food, and natural resource system. Biotechnology is playing an increasingly important role in agriculture due to its potential to address a wide range of challenges facing the industry. One of the key benefits of biotechnology in agriculture is its ability to improve crop yields. Biotechnology techniques such as genetic engineering and marker-assisted selection allow for the creation of crops that are more resistant to pests and diseases, have improved drought tolerance, and produce higher yields.

 

This is particularly important given the increasing demand for food due to population growth and the need to produce more food on existing farmland. With projections that global population will grow to as much as 10 billion by 2050 (Pew Research Center 2022), there is increasing concern as to how this system should be transformed to feed this population sustainably.

 

In addition to improving crop yields, biotechnology is also important in enhancing food quality and safety. Biotechnology can be used to create crops with improved nutritional content, reduced levels of toxins and allergens, and improved shelf life. For example, biotechnology has been used to create rice with increased levels of vitamin A, which can help to address vitamin A deficiency, a major public health issue in developing countries.

 

Agricultural biotechnology, also known as agritech, is an area of agricultural science involving the use of scientific tools and techniques, including genetic engineering, molecular markers, molecular diagnostics, vaccines, and tissue culture, to modify living organisms: plants, animals, and microorganisms.

 

Crop biotechnology is one aspect of agricultural biotechnology which has been greatly developed upon in recent times. Desired trait are exported from a particular species of Crop to an entirely different species. These transgene crops possess desirable characteristics in terms of flavor, color of flowers, growth rate, size of harvested products and resistance to diseases and pests.

For more advanced knowledge on Biotechnology in Agriculture please visit : From Lab to Field: The Power of Biotechnology in Agriculture

Agricultural biotechnology can be used to create genetically modified crops for combating hunger and malnutrition. Traditional biotechnology techniques such as selective breeding, hybridization, and fermentation have been modifying living plants for improved yield or enhanced nutritional value from time immemorial. However, with improvements in knowledge about the role of individual plant genes, modern biotechnology techniques can be used to add, delete, or edit specific genes to produce a desired variety, thereby reducing the possibility of off-target effects. For example, golden rice, an engineered variety of rice, contains two extra genes to make it produce beta-carotene, a precursor to Vitamin A, that can help address nutrient deficiencies that lead to blindness, anemia, and weakened immune systems among children.

 

Scientific advances can also help develop genetically modified crops that withstand natural calamities, pests, and diseases. Such varieties can increase crop yields, lessen the need to use pesticides and insecticides, lift farmers out of poverty, and ensure food security. Beyond that, biotechnology can help produce healthier and faster-growing animals and improve the quality and quantity of milk, eggs, and meat for human consumption.

 

A GMO (genetically modified organism) is a plant, animal, or microorganism that has had its genetic material (DNA) changed using technology that generally involves the specific modification of DNA, including the transfer of specific DNA from one organism to another. Scientists often refer to this process as genetic engineering. Most GMO crops are used in food for animals like cows, chickens, and fish. They are also used to make ingredients that are then used in food products like cereal, snack chips, and vegetable oils. Some GMO plants contain plant-incorporated protectants (PIPs) to make them resistant to insects, reducing the need for and use of many spray pesticides.

 

An article by the CROPPS Research Community emphasizes the need for a deeper understanding of the biology of plants and their responses to a changing climate, among other factors. The vision and work of the Center for Research on Programmable Plant Systems (CROPPS) focus on understanding the deep biology of plants to create an Internet of Living Things. The vision depends on transdisciplinary collaboration—biotechnology and synthetic biology, robotics and automation, sensing and automation, and computing—to enable a digital dialogue with plant systems.

 

Agricultural Biotechnology Market

In the changed post-COVID-19 business landscape, the global market for Agricultural Biotechnology estimated at US$43.3 Billion in the year 2022, is projected to reach a revised size of US$88.9 Billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 9.4% over the analysis period 2022-2030. Molecular Diagnostics, one of the segments analyzed in the report, is projected to record a 10.8% CAGR and reach US$35.6 Billion by the end of the analysis period. Taking into account the ongoing post pandemic recovery, growth in the Tissue Culture segment is readjusted to a revised 10.1% CAGR for the next 8-year period.

 

According to new business trends worldwide, the Agriculture Biotechnology Market provides Maximum ROI and These industries are the highest-earning worldwide and are expected to grow quickly.

Escalated penetration of biotechnology, tissue culture, and molecular breeding and unique plant breeding is defining the success parameters of agricultural biotechnology market.

 

Key Market Segments:

  • On the basis of type, agricultural biotechnology market is segmented into molecular diagnostics, molecular markers, tissue culture, vaccines, genetic engineering, and others.
  • On the basis of application, the agricultural biotechnology market is bifurcated into transgenic crops, flower culturing, nutritional supplements, biofuels, antibiotic development, vaccine development and others.
  • On the basis of organism type, the agricultural biotechnology market is divided into plants, animals, microbes, and others.
  • On the basis of technology, the agricultural biotechnology market is fragmented into genome editing tools, ribonucleic acid interference [RNAi], biochips, deoxy ribonucleic acid [DNA] sequencing, and synthetic biology.
  • Based on the product, the agricultural biotechnology market is segregated into crop protection products, transgenic seeds, and synthetic biology-enables products. Crop protection products are further sub-categorized into biostimulants, and biopesticides. Transgenic seeds are further sub-segmented into soybean, fruits & vegetables, maize, cotton, and others.

 

The Agricultural Biotechnology market in the U.S. is estimated at US$12.7 Billion in the year 2022. China, the world`s second largest economy, is forecast to reach a projected market size of US$15.2 Billion by the year 2030 trailing a CAGR of 8.7% over the analysis period 2022 to 2030. Among the other noteworthy geographic markets are Japan and Canada, each forecast to grow at 8.5% and 7.7% respectively over the 2022-2030 period. Within Europe, Germany is forecast to grow at approximately 7.2% CAGR.

 

 

The major players are KWS SAAT SE & Co. KGaA, ChemChina, Corteva., Limagrain, MITSUI & CO., LTD., AgPlenus ltd., Biomica, Evogene Ltd., Canonic ltd., Bayer AG, Valent BioSciences LLC, Nufarm Limited, Marrone Bio Innovations., Performance Plants Inc., ADAMA Ltd. among other domestic and global players. Market share data is available for global, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA) and South America separately. DBMR analysts understand competitive strengths and provide competitive analysis for each competitor separately.

 

References and Resources also include:

https://znewsafrica.com/uncategorized/293084/agricultural-biotechnology-market-2022-analytical-overview-technological-innovations-with-economic-indicators-by-2029/

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2022/06/29/how-biotechnology-will-transform-the-food-and-agriculture-system/

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