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maize

Sweet way to greater yields

Three years ago, biotechnologists demonstrated in field trials that they could increase the productivity of maize by introducing a rice gene into the plant that regulated the accumulation of sucrose in kernels and led to more kernels per maize plant. They knew that the rice gene affected the performance of a natural chemical in maize, […]

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Swapping where crops are grown could feed an extra 825 million people

Redrawing the global map of crop distribution on existing farmland could help meet growing demand for food and biofuels in coming decades, while significantly reducing water stress in agricultural areas, according to a new study. Published today in Nature Geoscience, the study is the first to attempt to address both food production needs and resource sustainability […]

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Lancaster scientist helps to tackle new invasive crop pest in southern Africa

Professor Kenneth Wilson of Lancaster Environment Centre has flown to Zambia to assess the Fall armyworm outbreaks that are devastating crops in southern Africa. The Fall armyworm – a caterpillar that eats its way through staple cereal crops, like maize, and other crops, including beans and peas – poses a major threat to food security […]

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GOBII releases open-source tools for faster plant breeding

Crop breeders in developing countries can now access free tools to accelerate the breeding of improved crop varieties, thanks to a collaboration between the GOBII project at the Boyce Thompson Institute (BTI) and Cornell University (USA), and the James Hutton Institute (JHI) in Scotland. The collaboration works with breeding centers around the world to identify unmet needs and […]

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