GM Mustard Opportunity: India’s Path to Food Security | PWOnlyIAS 2023

Context: This article is based on an Editorial “A GM crop decision that cuts the mustard Premium” which was published in The Hindu. The adoption of science-based technologies in GM Mustard crop improvement is crucial to address the global food and nutritional security under the fast-changing climate.

From Zero Hunger to Self-Reliance: The Role of GM Mustard Crop Innovation

• Addressing Global Hunger: Referring to the 2019 Global Food Security and Nutrition Report, achieving the ‘Zero Hunger’ target by 2030 is projected to be challenging.
• Striving for Self-Reliance: To attain self-sufficiency in food production, the development of superior crop varieties and hybrids is essential. For Example Bt Cotton and GM Mustard
• Building on Past Success: The Green Revolution of the 1960s-70s markedly increased food production from a meager 50 million tonnes in 1950-51 to a substantial 300 million tonnes in 2020-21.
• Adapting to Current Challenges: To effectively combat contemporary challenges such as climate change and to ensure the production of nutrient-rich food, the development and adoption of new biotech/GM crops with enhanced traits are indispensable.

The Global Impact of GM Crops: Biosafety, Benefits, and Prosperity (GM Mustard)

• Broad Impact: Genetic modification extends to vital food crops, enhancing traits like insect resistance, herbicide resistance, climate resilience, and nutritional quality on a global scale.
• High Adoption: According to a report by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) 2020, a total of 72 countries have adopted GM crops such as GM Mustard either as human food or animal feed, as well as for commercial cultivation.
  • GM food crops, since adoption in 1996 globally have been proven for their biosafety for the last 25 years and more.
• Highly Beneficial: GM crops have benefited more than 1.95 billion people in five countries (Argentina, Brazil, Canada, India and the United States) or 26% of the current world population of 7.6 billion.
• Economic Prosperity: Bt cotton has been viewed globally as a great success story in terms of economic advantage to farmers and to the nation.
  • Global economic gains contributed by GM crops (1996-2018) have amounted to $224.9 billion in economic benefits to more than 16 million farmers, 95% of whom are from developing countries.

GM Mustard Hybrid DMH-11: A Breakthrough for India’s Edible Oil Self-Sufficiency

• The GM mustard hybrid is based on the barnase/barstar system, which works on the principle of removing male fertility in one parent and restoring it in the offspring. 
• The herbicide tolerance gene has been deployed as a selection marker for developing the GM mustard.
• While the use of herbicides in herbicide tolerant (HT) crops has an advantage in saving soil moisture and nutrients, besides effective weed control, the herbicide tolerance gene in GM mustard is primarily used fowr selecting genetically transformed lines, and for hybrid seed production.

• Reason to Focus: India faces a major deficit in edible oils, with 60% of its demand being met by imports. Thus, increasing the productivity of mustard in the country is vital for the economic well-being of farmers and self-sufficiency in edible oil production.
• Significance of GM mustard hybrid, DMH-11: Higher vigor and yield and will facilitate an increase in domestic production of edible oils as well as enhanced farm incomes.
• Approval: On October 25, 2022, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India, approved the release of DMH-11 and its parental line for cultivation.
  • This will help boost the vibrant genetic engineering research sector in the country and enable the generation of new crop varieties with improved traits.

A Path to Economic Prosperity and Self-Reliance in Agriculture: Bt Cotton and GM Mustard

• Economically Important: This advancement in GM crops will benefit farmers by increasing yield per hectare, also leading to an increase in their incomes.
• Help in achieving Self-Reliance: Cultivation of these GM mustard hybrids developed indigenously could help enhance farmers’ income, reduce the oil-import burden and help achieve much-needed self-reliance in edible oil production.
• Sustainability with Profitability: The environmental release of DMH-11 marks the beginning of a new era in self-reliance and sustainability in agriculture. More improved GM food crops are needed to boost the profitability of Indian farmers.

Conclusion

GM Mustard, particularly the DMH-11 hybrid, holds significant promise for India’s food security and economic well-being. The global success of GM crops underscores their potential benefits. However, continued research and responsible adoption are essential to ensure sustainability and prosperity for Indian farmers. Embracing science-based technologies in crop improvement is pivotal in addressing our evolving food security challenges