CROP BIOTECHNOLOGY AND GENETIC MODIFICATIONS IN AGRICULTURAL CROPS

Biotechnology has played a significant role in crop improvement and productivity and has flourished well since the last decade of the 20th century. Biotechnology is a tool that intensively uses biological systems to produce quality products for human consumption, particularly in the fields of agriculture and food processing. The recent advances in the field of biotechnology have enabled us to produce genetically engineered products with high sustainability and superiority; for example, the production of high-yielding crop varieties, which are resistant to both biotic and abiotic stresses. In the early days, biotechnology didn't bring any ground-breaking improvements in the field of plant sciences, which may be due to a lack of knowledge regarding transformation vectors and regeneration procedures. But, with the passage of time, the development of protocols for transformation and regeneration has revolutionized the field of agriculture through genetic modifications of the parent materials. In view of the growing trends in the world's population and climate change, we need improved varieties for sustainable agriculture that can be achieved through biotechnology. This chapter, therefore, provides the basic knowledge regarding the application of plant biotechnology in crop husbandry. The last part of the chapter covers the potential risks associated with biotechnology/genetic engineering and bio-engineered products