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Science 16 July 1999:
Vol. 285. no. 5426, pp. 387 - 389
DOI: 10.1126/science.285.5426.387
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Biotechnology and Food Security in the 21st Century

Ismail Serageldin

Biotechnology can contribute to future food security if it benefits sustainable small-farm agriculture in developing countries. Presently, agrobiotechnology research cites ethical, safety, and intellectual property rights issues. Protection of intellectual property rights encourages private sector investment in agrobiotechnology, but in developing countries the needs of smallholder farmers and environmental conservation are unlikely to attract private funds. Public investment will be needed, and new and imaginative public-private collaboration can make the gene revolution beneficial to developing countries. This is crucial for the well-being of today's hungry people and future generations.

Chairman, Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, and Vice President for Special Programs, World Bank, 1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA.

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
The Evolution of Modern Agriculture and Its Future with Biotechnology.
S. K. Harlander (2002)
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Biotechnology and the Poor.
M. J. Chrispeels (2000)
Plant Physiology 124, 3-6
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Genetically Modified Crops and the Environment.
J. E. Barton and M. Dracup (2000)
Agron. J. 92, 797-803
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