Global Wheat Production Could Benefit from Closing the Genetic Yield Gap

Overview

Journal Nat Food

Specialties Environmental Health
Nutritional Sciences

Date 2023 Apr 28

PMID 37117937

Authors

Nimai Senapati

Mikhail A Semenov

Nigel G Halford

Malcolm J Hawkesford

Senthold Asseng

Mark Cooper

Frank Ewert

Martin K van Ittersum

Pierre Martre

Jorgen E Olesen

Matthew Reynolds

Reimund P Rotter

Heidi Webber

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Global food security requires food production to be increased in the coming decades. The closure of any existing genetic yield gap (Y) by genetic improvement could increase crop yield potential and global production. Here we estimated present global wheat Y, covering all wheat-growing environments and major producers, by optimizing local wheat cultivars using the wheat model Sirius. The estimated mean global Y was 51%, implying that global wheat production could benefit greatly from exploiting the untapped global Y through the use of optimal cultivar designs, utilization of the vast variation available in wheat genetic resources, application of modern advanced breeding tools, and continuous improvements of crop and soil management.

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