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Sustainable food production needs biotechnology
Biotechnology Advances 28 (2010) 936
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Biotechnology Advances j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / b i o t e c h a d v
Book review Sustainable food production needs biotechnology Insect-resistant maize: A case study of fighting the African stem borer, J. Bürgi, CABI, Wallingford, UK, 2009, pp. 291, ISBN: 978-184593-569-6
The need for food has never been greater. Modern agriculture appears to barely keep up with the increasing demand for food and questions are emerging about the environmental sustainability of crop production using the existing methods. This book highlights the role of various biotechnologies in improving crop productivity. The book is about maize (corn in North America) and its pests in Africa, mainly Kenya. The focus is on the efforts of a specific project, the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa project, for developing pest resistant varieties of this crop. The book was originally published in 2007 in German under the title Mais nach Mass. The English version of the book updates parts of the German edition and includes some new sections. Maize is a staple food in Kenya and some other regions of Africa. Cultivated for thousands of years by the Indians of South and Central America, maize came to the Old World after Christopher Columbus arrived in Cuba. Maize was introduced to Africa by the Portuguese in the sixteenth century. Stem borers, or caterpillar of certain moths, are major pests of maize in Africa. Pesticides are not effective against the borers once they have penetrated the plant stem. Modern plant breeding techniques including genetic engineering have been effectively used
0734-9750/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.biotechadv.2010.05.017
in developing maize varieties with improved resistance to pests. This book provides convincing evidence that biotechnology is essential to a future food security for the world. Food security based on sustainable crop production is of course necessary for our continued wellbeing. Many more projects of the type discussed in the book will be needed to achieve this important objective. This account by a journalist does not delve much into the technical issues. Instead, it provides a highly readable narrative of an important project in a social context. The book is illustrated with numerous color photographs. Short biographies and pictures of the individuals involved in the Kenyan project make the book interesting. The discussion of the issues faced in having a crop variety accepted by the local farmers is particularly insightful. This hardcover book is produced to a good quality, but it is not for everyone. Individuals concerned with crop production and improvement research in the developing world will find it an interesting case study. Fieldworkers tasked with marketing a new crop to farmers should find the book useful. Yusuf Chisti School of Engineering, PN456, Massey University, Private Bag 11 222, Palmerston North, New Zealand E-mail address: [email protected].
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Biotechnology Advances j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s ev i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / b i o t e c h a d v
Book review Sustainable food production needs biotechnology Insect-resistant maize: A case study of fighting the African stem borer, J. Bürgi, CABI, Wallingford, UK, 2009, pp. 291, ISBN: 978-184593-569-6
The need for food has never been greater. Modern agriculture appears to barely keep up with the increasing demand for food and questions are emerging about the environmental sustainability of crop production using the existing methods. This book highlights the role of various biotechnologies in improving crop productivity. The book is about maize (corn in North America) and its pests in Africa, mainly Kenya. The focus is on the efforts of a specific project, the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa project, for developing pest resistant varieties of this crop. The book was originally published in 2007 in German under the title Mais nach Mass. The English version of the book updates parts of the German edition and includes some new sections. Maize is a staple food in Kenya and some other regions of Africa. Cultivated for thousands of years by the Indians of South and Central America, maize came to the Old World after Christopher Columbus arrived in Cuba. Maize was introduced to Africa by the Portuguese in the sixteenth century. Stem borers, or caterpillar of certain moths, are major pests of maize in Africa. Pesticides are not effective against the borers once they have penetrated the plant stem. Modern plant breeding techniques including genetic engineering have been effectively used
0734-9750/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.biotechadv.2010.05.017
in developing maize varieties with improved resistance to pests. This book provides convincing evidence that biotechnology is essential to a future food security for the world. Food security based on sustainable crop production is of course necessary for our continued wellbeing. Many more projects of the type discussed in the book will be needed to achieve this important objective. This account by a journalist does not delve much into the technical issues. Instead, it provides a highly readable narrative of an important project in a social context. The book is illustrated with numerous color photographs. Short biographies and pictures of the individuals involved in the Kenyan project make the book interesting. The discussion of the issues faced in having a crop variety accepted by the local farmers is particularly insightful. This hardcover book is produced to a good quality, but it is not for everyone. Individuals concerned with crop production and improvement research in the developing world will find it an interesting case study. Fieldworkers tasked with marketing a new crop to farmers should find the book useful. Yusuf Chisti School of Engineering, PN456, Massey University, Private Bag 11 222, Palmerston North, New Zealand E-mail address: [email protected].