Some limitations of the biotechnological revolution

Abstract

Food is the most basic of human needs and adequate nutrition is universally recognized as a fundamental human right. However, despite the fact that the world's agricultural resources and the current sensational wave of biotechnological revolution are amply sufficient to assume a reasonable diet to everybody, a very significant proportion of the world's population is still suffering from serious under nutrition. There is the need to correct the assumption that the biotechnological revolution is not the eureka for the world's food problem. The objective of this paper is to challenge and possibly change the notion that biotechnology alone is the magic wand that brings solution to all of agriculture's pitfalls, by clarifying misconceptions concerning these underlying assumptions. The article reviews some of the highlights of modern plant biotechnology and discusses the potential applications and the limitations in the betterment of farming systems in this millennium and beyond. Despite the fact biotechnology will facilitate the farming of crops and rearing of livestock with multiple durable resistance to the vast array of pests and diseases particularly in the absence of pesticides and other non-degradable toxic chemicals, there is also enough evidence to prove that it will not ensure absolute food security, protect the environment and reduce the poverty level in the developing world.

International Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development Vol. 7(2) 2006: 26-32