Researchers from the John Innes Centre (JIC) have developed a variety of wheat that has high levels of iron. This new biofortified variety could help decrease the number of people with iron deficiency around the world.
Wheat contains iron in parts that are removed before milling. With the use of the …
Chickpeas may soon be added to the list of vitamin A-enriched crops. Vitamin A has been proven to enhance brain function, improve sight and skin health, and slow down aging.
According to Bunyamin Tar’an, professor at the University of Saskatchewan and chickpea breeder, chickpeas are a well-known source of protein and …
Using CRISPR to add—or remove—a plant trait is faster, more precise, easier, and in most cases cheaper than either traditional breeding techniques or older genetic engineering methods.
Although scientists can use CRISPR to add genes from other species to a plant, many labs are working to exploit the vast diversity of …
The Green Revolution that began in the 1940s and 50s brought about large increases in crop yields and saved millions of people from mass famine. Yet malnutrition remains widely prevalent around the globe. And, while many people eat enough calories, many do not get enough nutrients.
Now, plant breeders and biotechnologists …
Back in the 60s, the Green Revolution changed the way we looked at food, both in terms of growing and eating. The focus was simply this — to increase production of staples so no one would go hungry.
Today, most of us do get enough to eat, in terms of calories, …
Up to half a million children around the world are going blind every year due to a lack of Vitamin A in their diets. According to the World Health Organization, Vitamin A deficiency, — which afflicts 250 million children worldwide — is the leading cause of preventable blindness in children …
Earlier this year, National Agricultural Research Organisation (Naro) released bean varieties, which have higher levels of iron and zinc for production by Ugandan farmers.
Dr Stanley Nkalubo, head of legumes research at NaCRRI—one of Naro’s research institutes, says use of bio-fortified foods is an inexpensive method to overcome or prevent malnutrition …
This year’s World Food Prize pays tribute to biofortification, an intervention that strengthens efforts to address one of the world’s most insidious and pervasive public health challenges–hidden hunger. That is good news for the majority of the two billion people globally who suffer from hidden hunger, and likewise for those …
One strategy for improving human health and the nutrition of resource poor people is increasing the iron content of beans. But what are the challenges for plant breeders?
Biofortification – a good strategy
Biofortification is a good strategy to improve the nutrition of resource poor people for a number of reasons:
• people …
This blog discusses the importance for health of iron in diets, and strategies for improving the nutritional status of target populations. Although not directly to do with plant genetics, it highlights many of the challenges facing plant scientists.
The common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris
Don’t spill your beans
The common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, native to an area between …
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