World food prize winner says GMO wheat key to feeding world

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Dr. Sanjaya Rajaram, the winner of the World Food Prize 2014, says genetic modification technology is needed to feed the world into the future. A wheat scientist in India and Mexico, he has bred 480 wheat varieties so far.He said global what production has to increase from 700 million metric tonnes, to one billion tonnes, to feed the world’s population by 2050 and conventional or hybrid breeding will not be enough.

“There are some reports coming in where they say perhaps GM will not be needed, I’m not sure about that,” said Rajaram.

“I think the world community, including the governments, scientific centres and the scientists, farmers, [have] got to prepare [for] how to meet that target.

“I also don’t see traditional plant breeding doing that job.”

The largest exporter of wheat is the United States, with 16 per cent of the global exports. Dr Rajaram said the U.S. is now allowing trials of GM wheat.

“If they’re going to this policy, I think the rest of the world will have to follow that.”

Read full, original post:  Feeding the world with wheat without using genetic modification will lead to food shortages says World Food Prize winner

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