Crop Improvement: US in Africa Dr. Vernon Gracen vg45@cornell.edu
Overview The need for increasing crop productivity in African environments The need for improving nutrient content of crops Significant Improvements in Crop Productivity Programs supporting improved crop productivity and nutrient content The need for Plant Breeders to develop new crop varieties with improved nutrient content and increased productivity under stressed conditions Cornell cooperative efforts to train African Plant Breeders
The Need to Improve Agricultural Productivity Severe hunger and poverty affects nearly 1 billion people around the world By 2015, it is estimated that the earth s population will reach 9 billion Global food production will need to jump by 70 to 100 percent to feed these people Rising incomes, increasingly scarce resources and a changing climate are putting additional strains on agricultural productivity Two billion people in the developing world are malnourished. Malnutrition continues to be the world s most serious health problem and single biggest contributor to child mortality
Deaths Caused by Hunger Verses Other Causes
Increasing Demand for Agricultural Production United Nations predicts world population will grow by more than 25 million each year to more than 9 billion by 2050 Rising income and urbanization will drive up the demand for high protein and healthier food ( meat and dairy) The US government plans to increase the share of bio-fuels in total fuel consumption from 3 % to 20 % in 10 years
Challenges of African Agriculture Low Productivity Photo Credit: IITA, ICRISAT Abiotic and Biotic stresses
Effects of Some Challenges on African Agriculture Stagnating Agricultural Productivity in SSA Cereal yields (Hg/ha) in China, Africa and Source: http://sustainableinnovations.biz/freeze_the_footprint.htm Southern Asia between 1961 and 2010. Source: Montpellier Panel Report (2013)
Global Food Security and Malnutrition Food requirements will double with a global population of 9 billion by 2015 Malnourished people will be over 1 billion 85% of the global population will be in developing countries 60% of the population in developing countries will live in cities There will be increased pressure to protect the environment and conserve natural resources
Micronutrient Malnutrition Affects nearly half the world s population More than 840 million people cannot meet their basic daily food and nutritional needs About 2 billion people, mostly women and children, are at risk from diseases, premature death, and lower quality of life linked to deficiencies of vitamin A, iodine, and iron
Risk Factor Some WHO Major Risk Factors Causing World Deaths in 2000 Occupational safety Unsafe water, sanitation, hygiene Alcohol Unsafe sex Tobacco Diet-related diseases 0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 Number of Deaths (X1000) (World Health Report, 2002)
Significant Improvements in Crop Productivity The Green Revolution The Green Revolution dramatically increased cereal production in Asia The development of F1 hybrid crops Hybrid seeds dramatically increased the yields of maize, sorghum, rice, sun flower, cotton, tomatoes, onions, egg plant, gourds, melons, cucumbers, peppers, cabbage, and others The development of GMO technology Biotech crops have increased yields, lowered production costs, reduced pesticide usage and promoted improved cultivation practices
Green Revolution Wheat and Rice
Yield Improvement Due to Hybrid Maize in the USA
GLOBAL IMPACT Of BIOTECH CROPS Source: Brookes and Barfoot, 2014; Clive James, 2014 IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY AND INCOME Farm income gains of ~ $117 B from 1996 to 2012, 58% due to lower production costs and 42% due to a productivity gain of 377 M tons PROTECT BIODIVERSITY 377 M tons would require additional 123 M Ha with conventional technology biotech is a land saving technology. Strategy: sustainable intensification double crop production on same area of 1.5 B Ha of crop land saves forests/biodiversity 13 M Ha lost/year ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT Reduce need for external inputs Saving of 497 M kg pesticides from 1996/2012 9% saved Conservation of SOIL & WATER thru biotech + no/low till HUMANITARIAN BENEFITS - Contribution to poverty alleviation for >16.5 M small resource-poor farmers @ half of them in China - 7.5 M, another 7.3 M in India
Economic Benefits By Region Source: Brookes and Barfoot, 2014 Region 1996-2012 (US$ billion) 2012 Alone (US$ billion) N. America 58.3 10.0 Asia 31.7 4.7 Latin America 25.4 3.5 Africa 1.3 0.3 Europe 0.2 <0.1 Total 116.9 18.7
Why Invest in Agricultural Development Three quarters of the world s poorest people get their food and income from farming small plots of land They grow a diversity of local crops and must deal with unique diseases, pests, drought and unproductive soil. Investing in agricultural development is two to four times more effective at reducing hunger and poverty than investing in any other sector Helping farm families grow more is the smartest way to fight hunger and poverty
Programs Supporting Increased Crop Productivity IFPRI s HarvestPlus II, $50 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Word Bank & USAID African Agricultural Technology Foundation s Water Efficient Maize for Africa(WEMA), $39.1 million from the Bill and Melinda gates Foundation and the Howard Buffett Foundation CIMMYT s Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA), Phase II, $33.3 million from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Howard Buffett Foundation AGRA s Program for African Seed Systems, $100 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation
Breeding for Micronutrient- Dense Staple Plant Foods (the CGIAR HarvestPlus Program) CGIAR Coopeators IFPRI - Coordination of project IRRI - Rice breeding CIAT - Beans and cassava breeding CIMMYT - Wheat and Maize breeding IITA Maize and sweet potato breeding CIP Sweet potato University of Adelaide, Waite Campus USDA-ARS, U.S. Plant, Soil & Nutr. Lab., Cornell U. Other international centers (ICARDA, ICRISAT) Other universities in developed and developing countries National Agricultural Research Services Non-government organizations $50 million for 5 years (Gates Foundation, Word Bank & USAID)
Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA) Partnership of the Africa Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) with National Agricultural Research Institutes in Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda and CIMMYT and Monsanto Funded at $39.1 million by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Howard G. Buffett Foundation Working with a gene, cspb, from Bacillus subtilis that makes Maize plants resistant to drought.
WEMA CIMMYT will provide germplasm, conventional breeding expertise and drought tolerance screening capability Monsanto will provide proprietary germplasm, advanced breeding tools and drought tolerance transgenes developed with BASF AATF will distribute varieties developed to African seed companies without royalty NARIs, farmer groups and seed companies will provide testing, seed multiplication and distribution Expected regulatory approval in US in 2014 and in Africa in 2017
DTMA Drought tolerant maize for Africa plans to accelerate drought tolerant maize development and deployment in 13 countries in SSA Partners CIMMYT IITA NARIs Private seed companies NGOs
DTMA Funding partners for $33.3 million Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Howard G. Buffett Foundation Research consultants Cornell University University of Hohenheim
DTMA Seed Suppliers Map
AGRA A Green Revolution for Africa Building the capacity to develop new varieties of seed that are more nutritious, higher yielding and withstand environmental stresses to produce crops that meet farmer and consumer needs The development of new varieties that are higher yielding and withstand environmental stresses to produce crops that meet farmer and consumer needs will require a new generation of plant breeders and other scientists trained in conventional and molecular breeding methods
AGRA Program for African Seed Systems Funded at $100 million by AGRA a joint venture of the Bill and Melinda Gates and Rockefeller Foundations Increasing crop productivity will require the development of hundreds of new, locally adapted crop varieties This must be done by well trained, knowledgeable crop scientists who understand plant breeding and the ecologies, production constraints and local farmer practices in a wide range of countries
PhD Programs Supported by AGRA ACCI African Center for Crop Improvement Located at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal in South Africa Trains plant breeders from East and Southern Africa WACCI West African Center for Crop Improvement Located in University of Ghana Trains plant breeders from West and Central Africa
Cornell University Partners with both ACCI and WACCI Provides help with curriculum development Provides IT and communications support Provides access to Mann Agricultural Library Provides management support to WACCI V Gracen serves as an Associate Director
African Center for Crop Improvement, ACCI Established in 2000 with funding from the Rockefeller Foundation and extended in 2007 with funding from AGRA (RF and Gates Foundations) http://www.acci.org.za/main.asp?nav=5
ACCI Trains African PhD s in plant breeding Students take courses for 2 years at the University of Kwa- Zulu Natal Students return home to conduct thesis research for 3 years Students return to KZN for several months to complete and submit PhD dissertations Graduated over 60 PhD Plant Breeders to date from Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe
West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement Established in June, 2007 to train plant breeders over a 10-year period (AGRA-PASS grant); additional GCP grant (2008) http://www.wacci.edu.gh/
The WACCI Programme An innovative 4-year PhD programme Foundation courses in plant breeding and at the University of Ghana and advanced modules presented by international PB experts
Formal Courses Required courses WACI 701: Biometry &Experimental Design 3 credits WACI 705: Plant Pests and Integrated Pest Mgnt WACI 707: Genetic Improvement of Crop Plants 3 credits 3 credits WACI 702: Biotechnology in Plant Breeding WACI 708: Advanced Research Methodology 3 credits 3 credits WACI 706: Host Plant and pathogen interactions 3 credits Elective Courses WACI 703: Plant Genetics WACI 704: Physiology of Environmental Stresses 3 credits 3 credits 15 Credits/Semester
1 Visiting Scientists (Advanced Modules) 2 5 3 4 6 11 12 16 8 7 10 13 17 9 Tissue Culture and Plant Transformation Seed Business Development Scientific Communication and Library Tools Breeding Sweet potato Cassava breeding 17. Dr. Bill Puplampu Cowpea breeding Breeding Designs and Striga Resistance Breeding Sorghum Vegetable Breeding Leadership training SAS Genetics Data Handling Marker Assisted Rice Breeding Molecular markers in maize, sorghum, millet and cowpea 14 15
Relocation of students to their home institutions for PhD research work Years II-IV Students return to the WACCI 3-6 months before the end of final year to complete write-up, submit and defend thesis
WACCI Trains students from Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal Has graduated 18 PhD Plant Breeders Has been chosen by World Bank as an African Center of Excellence Has obtained support from AGRA, Generation Challenge Program, Kirkhouse Foundation, The West Africa Agricultural Productivity Programme and the Next Generation Cassava Program.
WACCI Students Research About 70 % work on breeding for abiotic and biotic stress tolerance Drought, low N and Striga tolerance in maize Downy mildew resistance in pearl millet Drought tolerance in cassava Virus resistance in ground nuts Disease resistance in sorghum, rice and maize About 30 % work on improved nutritional content or food qualities High beta carotene cassava Cooking and eating quality in rice High beta carotene content and lower sugar content in sweet potatoes
Partnership With 15 NARI s in WCA GAEC BINARI, Ghana Crop Services, Ghana CSIR- CRI, Ghana CSIR- PGRRI, Ghana CSIR SARI, Ghana INERA, Burkina Faso INRAN, Niger IER, Mali ABU, Nigeria NRCRI, Nigeria IITA, Nigeria LAUT, Nigeria IRAD, Cameroon NIHORT, Nigeria Embu Agricultural Staff Training College, Kenya
Africa Can Feed Itself and the World AGRA exists to fulfill the vision that Africa can feed itself and the world. "Africa has the potential to feed not just the continent s citizens, but also help create a secure global food system," AGRA Chair, Kofi Annan. Investing in agriculture is the surest path to reducing poverty and hunger in Africa. If Africa is to produce agricultural products for the future, needs of processors and end users must be considered.
African Agriculture: Untapped Potential to Meet 2050 Demands Africa productivity today: Average hybrid maize yields: 1 ton per hectare 1/3 of developing regions 1/5 of developed regions Investing as part of DuPont strategy to increase food production Opportunities for productivity improvements ~30 million hectares available for maize production across the African continent Similar productivity opportunities exist in emerging markets worldwide http://www2.dupont.com/media_room/en_us/materials/presentations/presentations.html 9
Output traits will move to center stage as end use markets provide the next growth platform Future Product Targets Feed Nutrition 75% of grain is fed Likely Targets: - elevated energy from endosperm and the embryo - improved protein quality - phosphorous availability - potential to impact meat quality Corn Processing 25% of grain is processed Likely Targets: Corn wet milling - starch recovery - oil modification Dry grind ethanol - enhanced fermentability - improved distiller s dry grain It s not if, but when
Needs and Opportunities Training of Plant Breeders and other scientists in Asia. Thailand is well suited to train MS and PhDs from South and SE Asia in conventional and molecular technologies. Development of a public network of scientists who can provide germplasm access and variety testing on a regional basis Development of a Coordinated Tropical Crops Research Consortium including Thailand, China, Brazil, India, Nigeria, United States, CIMMYT, CIAT and IITA. Development of hybrid rice varieties through public and private seed sectors in Thailand, India and China. Development of awareness and capability to breed crops to meet end user needs and capture value from possessors and consumers
Thank You