- Five cereal crops provide 60% of the daily food intake worldwide!!!
- Three cereals (rice, maize, and wheat) cover more than 50% of food intake.
- Maize is regarded as a "Hunger-breaking crop", particularly by the poor farmers of Africa.
- Today, climate change is the biggest threat challenging agriculture. So, which crop is more vulnerable to climate change (rainfall, temperature, etc.)?
- Maize is getting wider destinations even to new places due to its special characteristics. What do you think are its special merits for its popularity?
- Which of the 3 popular world cereal crops would be the 1st in 2050 and/or 2100? Why?
Thank you for all your valuable responses!!!
Alem
Maize's popularity around the world is related to its very high productivity largely related to advanced hybrids.
Wheat and rice have the advantage of better ability to be used for direct consumption most maize is used for animal feed and ethanol.
None of these very important crops are optimized in monocultures without rotation.
None of the crops alone provide a reasonable and nutritious diet or animal ration.
For reliability sustainability and lower carbon footprint the global agriculture system would be best weaned from agrichemicals and depend instead on rotation cover crops organic amendments and mixed farming.
In a grain system with over half of the carbon footprint from nitrogen fertilizer the first requirement is to maximize pulse production to drastically lower that reliance and to improve yield and its stability for pestilence wees and disease.
A maize soybean rotation increases the maize and soybean yield up to some 20% while reducing carbon footprint.
Since rice and wheat are consumed directly they can supply more people that a meat economy based on feed grains.
By focusing on the mixed farming rotation cover crop amendment and reduced tillage and agrichemical dependence great strides can be made in sequestration of significant amounts of soil organic matter which addresses the principle yield constraint globally which is the soil's ability to provide limited amounts of water.
By setting goals of soil organic matter improvements and giving education and credits the agriculture fields can be a chief mechanism of moderating the greenhouse gas enriched environment while improving the environment.
The problem we have had is focusing not on the system but rather on sole crops and their production.
Considering the global context of climate change, maize crop can tolerate various stresses such as heat (higher temperatures), drought, water and others. This crop can save life of both humans and animals as it can be used as food, feed, fodder and fuel. Therefore, it can be predicted that maize will be the number one crop in the future.
Dear Dr. Keshab Babu Koirala
Thank you for the valuable answer.
Would you share any source regarding this (if you have any)?
Thank you, Sir.
Alem
Dear Dr. Redda,
I am a maize breeder by profession. I am working on maize as a senior breeder since 28 years. In addition to conventional hybrids, we are working on identification of heat, drought and water stress resilient hybrids in close collaboration with CIMMYT. Furthermore, we are working on pro-vitamin A, Zn and QPM biofortified hybrids. Thank you for your keen interest regarding various maize related issues.
Best regards,
Dear Dr. Keshab Babu Koirala, thank you for sharing your experience (the biggest knowledge)!!!
I'm doing my Ph.D. on maize modeling using social, climate, soil, and crop aspects (with 3 maize varieties: hybrid, OPV, and local ones).
So nice to have you as a maize breeder and I'll get back to you with maize breeding-related issues.
STAY BLESSED!!!
Alem
Dear Prof. Paul Reed Hepperly
Really thank you for the insightful, extensive, and valuable thoughts you are putting for many critical questions in the RG platform.
My worry is how can we quote very crucial thoughts from thoughtful scholars in RG.
e.g.
Maize, rice, and wheat are the most important crops in the world; however, none of these very important crops are optimized in monocultures without rotation. ( Paul Reed Hepperly ).
STAY BLESSED!!!
Alem
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