BACKGROUNDER
Sustainability prominent focus for Canada’s plant science industry
Canada’s plant science industry enhances the sustainability of Canadian agriculture with innovations that benefit people, the planet and prosperity. Here’s how:
People
By 2050, the world population will have increased to 9.6 billion. How to feed that many people makes improved production one of agriculture’s foremost concerns, as well as one of the plant science industry’s biggest contributions. Through pesticides and biotechnology, the plant sciences industry offers farmers important tools for increasing yields thus helping to sustain our growing population.
Continued access to existing and new pesticide technologies to control weeds, insects and diseases helps Canadian farmers produce a safe and bountiful food supply. Without pesticides, food production in Canada would decrease by as much as 40 per cent - a drop that would have dramatic impacts on the ability to feed a hungry world.
Biotechnology also helps increase yields by increasing pest resistance and drought tolerance, but research into increasing yields in other ways is also underway.
Beyond sheer quality and quantity, significant biotechnology research is also focused on ways of adding additional health value to our food. One example of this is canola, a true Canadian biotechnology success story, and a great example of what biotechnology can do to increase the health profile of foods.
Other examples on the not-so-distant horizon include increased omega 3 in oils for better heart health, boosted lycopene in tomatoes for antioxidants associated with reducing the risk of cancer, and potatoes with 30 per cent more protein and the ability to absorb less oil.
Planet
Yield boosting technology – whether it is biotechnological or chemical – means farmers are able to get more from the same amount of land. That’s good for the farmer and for the consumer, but it’s also good for the planet because it means we protect forests, wetlands and other terrain that would otherwise be needed to produce food.
These lands, in their natural state, are important wildlife habitats that contribute to ecological diversity that is facing challenges because of urbanization.
The planet also benefits from practices such as conservation tillage, which would not be possible without innovations in pesticides and plant biotechnology. The benefits of conservation tillage, which is now practiced on more than 12 million hectares in Canada, include reduced risk of soil erosion, improved soil quality and lower greenhouse gas emissions. Low tillage also reduces fuel consumption by about 40 per cent while zero-till reduces it by 70 per cent.
Another sustainability challenge the plant sciences industry is working to address is that of water shortages. With predictions that one in five countries will face water shortages by 2030, this is a significant threat to the ability of farmers to produce enough food to feed the world.
Plant biotechnology research on drought resistance has been ongoing for some time now, and field-testing of drought resistant corn and canola is already underway in Canada.
Our industry’s commitment to sustainability also includes a significant focus on our own responsibilities such as the responsible recycling of empty containers and management of obsolete products. In Canada, over 77 million empty pesticide containers being recycled into safe, new products for use on farms and over 1.2 million kilograms of obsolete pesticides have been collected and responsibly disposed of.
These initiatives have earned the respect of our counterparts around the world for their thoroughness and effectiveness, thanks to the support and participation of stakeholders throughout agriculture. By adopting a philosophy of responsibility and partnership, we are helping to minimize agriculture’s footprint on the environment.
Prosperity
Innovations in agriculture are already providing solutions to the world’s energy concerns. The development of bio-fuels such as ethanol and bio-diesel has created a vital, new value-added market for corn, canola and other commodities while providing a cleaner, more environmentally friendly source of renewable energy.
The plant sciences industry is keen to support this option for alleviating reliance on petroleum and non-renewable fuels. Significant research is already underway to develop higher starch content in crops, more efficient starch to ethanol conversions and ways to use biotech-derived microorganisms to increase refining process efficiencies.
Similarly, plant-based materials are emerging as exciting new replacements for products that were previously derived from non-renewable resources. These include plastics and polyester, as well as more environmentally friendly option for clothes, carpets, bedding and home décor.
These examples merely glimpse the opportunities ahead – opportunities for greater sustainability that the plant science industry is committed to bringing to fruition.
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