Sub-Saharan Africa could have a shortfall of nearly 90Mt of cereals by the year 2025 if current agricultural practices are maintained. Biotechnology is one of the ways to improve agricultural production. Insect-resistant varieties of maize and cotton suitable for the subcontinent have been identified as already having a significant impact. Virus-resistant crops are under development. These incl...

Organic farming (OF) has been believed to be capable of curtailing some hazardous effects associated with chemical farming (CF). However, debates also exist on whether OF can feed a world with increasing human population. We hypothesized that some improvements on OF may produce adequate crops and reduce environmental pollutions from CF. This paper makes comparative analysis of crop yield, soil ...

The green revolution of the 1960s and 1970s which resulted in dramatic yield increases in the developing Asian countries is now showing signs of fatigue in productivity gains. Intensive agriculture practiced without adherence to the scientific principles and ecological aspects has led to loss of soil health, and depletion of freshwater resources and agrobiodiversity. With progressive diversion ...

This paper was written by Edward Thompson, Jr., Senior Vice President, American Farmland Trust* in collaboration with the Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities. It is the fifth in a series of translation papers sponsored by the Funders’ Network to translate the impact of sprawl upon issues of importance to America’s communities and to suggest opportunities for progress that ...

Agriculture and its development is the foundation of development in Iran as a developing country. So, it can be regarded as the foundation for economical and social development.The capabilities of agriculture sector are limited and its efficiency is trivial because of neglecting agricultural development and keeping its support just as a slogan. The transformation of agriculture to a developed, ...

agricultural sustainability refers to the ability of a cropping system to produce, without causing irreversible damage tothe ecosystem. there is an increasing need to view cropping systems and identify management practices in a holisticindicator-based impact assessment. the main objective of this study was to compare and rank the cropping systems of themarvdasht plain in fars province; in order...

Indirect modification of animal genomes by interspecific hybridization, cross-breeding, and selection has produced an enormous spectrum of phenotypic diversity over more than 10,000 yr of animal domestication. Using these established technologies, the farming community has successfully increased the yield and efficiency of production in most agricultural species while utilizing land resources t...

Arid and semi-arid lands constitute a large proportion of available agricultural and rangeland in the world. These lands are characterised by low and unreliable rainfall, low land productivity, and low socioeconomic status of the inhabitants. Livestock plays a very significant role in their economies. Leguminous trees and shrubs, which dominate the natural rangelands, are often higher in crude ...