MainDB: Helping crops adapt to changing climates

Title: Helping crops adapt to changing climates
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NWPTypeOfOrganization: Private sector
NWPGeographicRegion: Africa; Asia; Caribbean and Central America; Europe; North America; Pacific/Oceania; South America
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Adaptation element: Adaptation planning and practices; Capacity building; Education and training; Impact assessment; Knowledge management; Science and research; Technology support
Adaptation sector/theme: Agriculture; Food security; Water resources; Biodiversity; Disaster risk reduction
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NWPDataSource: PSI
Description: Climate change is likely to have a negative impact on agricultural yield. Recent studies warn of declining crop yields and global food shortages as a result. The number and duration of dry spells, especially in already drought-prone areas, are expected to increase. Plant biotechnology offers solutions that allow farmers to adapt their agricultural techniques to such shifting climates. Drought-tolerant corn technology is part of BASF and Monsanto´s research and development in plant biotechnology, which is aimed at developing higher-yielding crops and crops more tolerant to unfavorable environmental conditions.
 
The most advanced product of the companies’ pipeline is a drought-tolerant corn, which will be the first biotechnology-derived drought-tolerant crop in the world. The companies’ scientists are turning to nature to find mechanisms involved in stress responses. Subsequently, genes responsible for these mechanisms are transferred to staple crops. One discovery is a naturally occurring gene, the cspB gene from Bacillus subtilis, which helps corn plants combat dry conditions and confers yield stability during periods of inadequate water supplies. By reducing the impact of drought on the plant, cspB helps provide yield stability. In addition, BASF supports the Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA) partnership with the aim of providing royalty-free new drought-tolerant maize varieties for small-scale.
Expected outcome: Improved yield stability is of significant value to farmers faced with unpredictable rainfall. In any given year, around 4-5 million hectares of corn-planted farmland in the United States may be affected by at least moderate drought. In field trials conducted last year in the western Great Plains, in the U.S., drought-tolerant corn met or exceeded the 6-10% target yield enhancement in some key drought-prone areas, where average yields range from 170 to 320 bushels per hectare.
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NWPGeographicScope: Global
Indicators of achievement: The product is targeted for market launch as early as possible, pending regulatory approvals. It is the first of a multi-generational family of biotech drought-tolerant products that are expected to be brought to market in the next decade. BASF plans to continue working with Monsanto to bolster the joint pipeline with other genes for drought tolerance as well as other abiotic stress tolerance traits.
NWPInformationType: Case study
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NWPPartner: BASF
Purpose: This case study demonstrates the possibility of enhancement of crops' resistance to changing climates. BASF has developed crops that are tolerant to unfavorable conditions and have high yields at the same time.
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Target group: Practitioners
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NWPReferences: Tackling climate change on the ground: http://www.wbcsd.org/Pages/EDocument/EDocumentDetails.aspx?ID=136&NoSearchContextKey=true
Find the case study summary here: https://unfccc.int/files/adaptation/nairobi_work_programme/private_sector_initiative/application/pdf/basf.wbcsd.pdf
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Created at 21/04/2016 11:45 by Roberto Felix
Last modified at 10/05/2022 22:28 by Nicholas Hamp-Adams
 
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