Role of Biotechnology In Agricultural Revolution |

ABSTRACT:

The consequences of the invention of DNA-based molecular techniques andtheir application to agriculture have been pervasive. This review examines thekey consequences for farmers and the public. These include widespreadcommercial applications of agricultural biotechnology in a limited number ofcountries, a large private-sector investment in biotechnology research,significant economic contributions to farmers, continuing controversy over itsenvironmental impacts, a proliferation of regulations (both national andinternational as a consequence of the technology and property rights), a widerange of changing public reaction, and relatively little contribution of thetechnology to increasing food production, nutrition, or farm incomes inless-developed countries. The commercial applications of agricultural biotechnology, the state ofresearch, and the economic and environmental impacts of applications to date;identify the main regulatory consequences; reviews the public reactions; and,in a final section, considers the implications for agriculture and foodsecurity in less-developed countries.