Potential Impact of Biotechnology on Adaption of Agriculture to Climate Change: The Case of Drought Tolerant Rice Breeding in Asia

Abstract

Abstract:In Asia and Africa the poor tend to live in marginal environments where droughts and floods are frequent. Global warming is expected to increase the frequency of these weather-induced perturbations of crop production. Drought tolerance (DT) has been one of the most difficult traits to improve in genetic crop improvement programs worldwide. Biotechnology provides breeders with a number of new tools that may help to develop more drought tolerant varieties such as marker assisted selection (MAS), molecular breeding (MB), and transgenic plants. This paper assesses some preliminary evidence on the potential impact of biotechnology using data from surveys of the initial DT cultivars developed through one of the main programs in Asia that has been funding DT rice breeding since 1998-The Rockefeller Foundation's Resilient Crops for 1724Water-Limited Environments program in China, India, and Thailand. Yield increases of DT rice varieties are 5 to 10 percent better than conventional varieties or currently grown commercial varieties than it has been in years. So far we only have experiment station evidence that DT varieties yielded better than conventional or improved varieties during moderate drought years (the one drought year during our study period in South India gave inconclusive results) and in severe drought both the DT and the conventional varieties were either not planted or, if planted, did not yield. We find that the governments could help overcome some of the constraints to the spread of DT cultivars by increasing government funding of DT research programs that take advantage of new biotech techniques and new knowledge from genomics. Secondly, public scientists can make breeding lines with DT traits and molecular markers more easily available to the private seed firms so that they can incorporate DT traits into their commercial hybrids particularly for poor areas. Third, governments can subsidize private sector production of DT seed or provide more government money for state extension services to produce DT varieties.

Is Indian agriculture becoming resilient to droughts? Evidence from rice production systems

“…Drought-tolerant crop varieties are of shorter duration, and have ability to withstand water scarcity and high temperature. In the case of rice, these have been reported to possess yield advantage of 5-28% over the existing high-yielding varieties (Selvaraj and Ramasamy, 2006;Virk and Witcombe, 2007;Pray et al, 2011;IRRI, 2013).…”

“…Unlike water-based drought management options, drought-tolerant seeds are not expensive, are easy to multiply and adopt, and provide long-term solution reducing pressure on water resources. The potential returns to investment on drought-tolerant rice research have been estimated in the range of 29-167% (Gautam, 2009;Pray et al, 2011;Mottaleb et al, 2012). Most of the existing drought-tolerant varieties have been developed using traditional methods of plant breeding, and these have been reported to withstand moderate drought shocks, but not the severe ones (Pray et al, 2011).…”

Financing Sustainable Agriculture under Climate Change with a Specific Focus on Foreign Aid

“…The programme generated significant improvement in both the research and technological capacity of the countries involved, and experiences from the project have been transferred to countries engaged in the network. Pray et al (2011) show that the programme generated droughttolerant varieties which have already been adapted by farmers in the target countries. New varieties of drought-tolerant rice are being tested in other Asian countries.…”

Managing Water and Soils to Achieve Adaptation and Reduce Methane Emissions and Arsenic Contamination in Asian Rice Production

“…The potential gains from developing drought-tolerant rice varieties are substantial, given the global importance of rice in assuring food security, particularly in Asia and in portions of Africa. Recent experience with drought-tolerant varieties in Asia suggests that the newer varieties generate somewhat higher yields in normal to good rainfall years, while providing some yield protection in moderate drought years [132]. However, in severe drought years, both conventional and drought-resistant varieties have failed to produce a viable crop.…”

“…However, in severe drought years, both conventional and drought-resistant varieties have failed to produce a viable crop. Further research and additional support from donors and national governments will be needed to develop better drought-resistant varieties and to achieve successful uptake by farmers [132].…”