Pamela Ronald talks about her work as a plant geneticist, about her work “studying genes that make plants resistant to disease and tolerant of stress.”Genetic improvement of plants isn’t new, she says. Ancient corn had a case so hard that it couldn’t be chewed; the ancient banana was full of large seeds; ancient brussels sprouts weren’t actually individual objects.
“To create these crops, breeders used many kinds of genetic techniques,” says Ronald. “Today breeders have even more the options choose from. Some of them are extraordinarily precise.
” She moves on to her own work on rice, “the staple food for more than half the world’s population.” Every year, 40% of the rice harvest is lost to pests and disease.
“Farmers rely on varieties that carry genes for resistance. Read more ;http://blog.ted.com/why-genetic-engineering-of-plants-is-vital-for-food-security-pamela-ronald-speaks-at-ted2015/
