Introduction –

Climate change and food security represent critical global challenges with profound socioeconomic impacts. Climate change adversely affects agriculture productivity, leading to reduced crop yields, diminished soil fertility, and altered nutrient composition in food.
In the 21st century, humankind is facing numerous global challenges, many of which are driven by rapid industrialization, population growth, and environmental degradation. These problems threaten not only human health and livelihood but also the stability of ecosystems and economics worldwide. Biotechnology has emerged as a crucial tool in addressing these issues, offering innovative solutions that Target the root causes of these challenges.

Current Problems and Their Socioeconomic Impact –

Climate change and it’s impacts on food security and nutrition are major challenge facing the world today. Rising temperatures, changing precipitation patterns, and extreme weather events are directly affecting agriculture productivity, crop yields and nutrient composition of foods.
These changes are exacerbating existing food insecurity, particularly in vulnerable regions like Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Climate change is projected to push an additional 43 million people in Africa into poverty by 2030 due to falling crop yields. Micronutrient deficiencies, known as “hidden hunger” , are expected to rise as elevated CO2 levels reduce the protein, mineral and vitamin content of staple crops like rice. Climate change is also increasing the risk of infectious diseases like malaria, dengue and diarrhea, further undermining health and nutrition.

Biotechnology-Driven Interventions and Solutions-

Biotechnology offers promising solutions to address the challenges posed by climate change on food systems and nutrition:

1. Developing climate-resilient crops: Genetic engineering and genome editing can create crop varieties that are tolerant to heat, drought, pests and diseases. For example, biofortified crops with enhanced nutritional value can help combat micronutrient deficiencies exacerbated by climate change.

2. Improving nutrient density: Biotechnology can increase the levels of essential vitamins, minerals, and proteins in staple foods. Golden Rice, engineered to produce provitamin A, is one example of a biofortified crop that could save millions of children from vitamin A deficiency

3. Reducing agricultural emissions: Biotechnology can help develop crops and livestock with lower greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to climate change mitigation. Precision fermentation to produce animal proteins is a promising approach to reduce the environmental footprint of animal agriculture.

4.Enhancing food safety: Biotechnology can be used to detect and remove toxins, allergens, and contaminants in food, improving food safety in the face of climate change impacts Bidsensors and rapid diagnostic tools can help monitor food quality and safety.

5.Improving Soil health: Here are some key points for improving soil health:

1. Increase organic matter: Add compost, manure, or green manure to improve soil structure and fertility.

2. Use conservation tillage: Reduce soil disturbance to preserve soil organic matter and reduce erosion.

3. Crop rotation: Rotate crops to break disease and pest cycles, improve soil fertility, and increase biodiversity.

4. Cover crops: Plant cover crops to reduce erosion, add organic matter, and provide habitat for beneficial insects.

5. Minimal use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides: Reduce chemical use to prevent soil degradation and environmental pollution.

6. Add beneficial microorganisms: Inoculate soil with beneficial microbes to enhance nutrient cycling and plant growth.

Conclusion-

The challenges of climate change and food and nutrition insecurity require urgent and innovative solutions, and biotechnology provides a powerful set of tools to address these issues. Through the development of drought-resistant crops, biofortified foods, precision agriculture, and alternative proteins, biotechnology-driven interventions offer the potential to mitigate the socioeconomic impacts of these global problems. However, these innovations must be pursued in an inclusive and ethical manner to ensure that they contribute to a more sustainable, equitable, and resilient future for all.

Anamika Debnath

University/College name : Women's College, Agartala