Young scientists needed for food security

MANILA, Philippines - The youth should go into the sciences, particularly agricultural biotechnology, to ensure the country's future food security, agriculturists said at a biotechnology convention held recently.

“We need the young ones, our future scientists and agriculturists, to continue our works for the agriculture sector, so that more food will be served on our table in the next years,” Rita Laude of UP Los Baños (UPLB) said at a science and technology forum on agri-biotechnology during the National Biotechnology Week celebrated by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) last week.

Laude, who gave a presentation on “Genomics Overview and Its Application in Crops,” said that agri-biotechnology was seen as a field of science that can address global concerns on food security.

Genomics involves the sequencing and analysis of the genome of plants, animals and microorganisms, and studies the role that they play in biology. Genomics is used in agriculture to cultivate large quantities of more nutrient-rich, more resistant and safe food crops even on a limited amount of land as well as livestock and aquatic organisms.

The Philippines, despite its vast fertile farmlands, might face a possible food shortage if the government will not invest in biotechnology, experts warned at the forum.

In a discussion dubbed S&T Forum on Agri-Biotech held in the recent National Biotechnology Week (NBW) 2015 at SM Dasmariñas in Cavite, scientists and agriculturists from the DOST-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (DOST-PCAARRD), UPLB, and UPLB – National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (UPLB-BIOTECH) discussed the programs, processes, and researches associated with biotechnology and genomics, with mostly agriculture and biology students in the audience.

The other speakers at the forum were Hayde Galvez of UPLB who discussed the “Coconut Genomics Program” of the Philippine Genome Center Development Program for Agriculture, and Mannix Pedro of UPLB-BIOTECH who presented his group’s project on the development of a plant biostimulant funded by PCAARRD.

A biostimulant is any substance based on natural resources made into a specific form and applied to plants, seeds, soil and others to stimulate the natural processes of plants and make them benefit from nutrient efficiency.