Name: The wheat field that could change the world
Uploaded: 2022-11-14T15:55:20Z
Duration: 10 min 51 s
Description: Crop physiologist Guntur V. Subbarao and his team have developed an antibiotic-infused strain of wheat that naturally combats harmful, fertilizer-eating bacteria -- a "monster" contributor to climate change. Learn more about how this breakthrough could once again revolutionize agriculture, increasing crop yields and protecting our planet at the same time.

Guntur V. Subbarao: The wheat field that could change the world

The wheat field that could change the world

Crop physiologist Guntur V. Subbarao and his team have developed an antibiotic-infused strain of wheat that naturally combats harmful, fertilizer-eating bacteria -- a "monster" contributor to climate change. Learn more about how this breakthrough could once again revolutionize agriculture, increasing crop yields and protecting our planet at the same time.

Modern agriculture uses 30 times more nitrogen fertilizer than it did at the start of the Green Revolution, yet only produces four times more food grain. Up to 70 percent of this fertilizer leaks away, fueled by soil bacteria that convert usable nitrogen into pollutants. By integrating antibiotic-producing genes from wild plants into wheat, scientists have created new varieties that keep nitrogen in the root zone, promising to reduce runoff and protect ecosystems. This innovation could transform global food security while reducing agriculture's hidden environmental costs.