The transfer of 0.1% – 0.5% of chloroplast traits via pollen in tobacco as well as parental inheritance of chloroplast DNA in other higher plants has been observed. In addition, Huang et al. observed that transgenes can migrate from the chloroplast to the nuclear genome. Singh et al.described a strategy based on epigenetic inheritance and post-transcriptional gene silencing /RNA interference that would allow allseeds from self-pollinated transgenic plants to be harvested and re-sown, without the need for specific treatments,while retaining all of the transgenes present in the parent while preventing outcrossing via either male or female gametophyte. The overall prospects of acceptance of transgenic crops and products will depend on positive public perception of this technology, especially as the agrobiotech industry complies with regulations, conducts rigorous research on biosafety and successfully completes field trials of these crops. Like any other newly developed technology,transgenic crop agrobiotechnology industry faces its own unique challenges and hurdles, especially relating to consumer concerns on health risks and environmental safety and barriers to world-wide trade.
Long term effects of GE foods must be rigorously studied but guidelines and regulations for field-testing and marketing of GM products likewise must be clearly defined to remove ambiguity and potential law suits.There are numerous technological challenges that must be overcome while attempting to introduce specific traits into a crop. Furthermore, the high cost of developing and obtaining authorization for the commercialization of a transgenic event limits the development of transgenic crops only for selecting traits of wide interest. Agro-based companies like Monsanto, Dupont, Syngenta, DowAgro, and Bayer Crop Science have daunting task of generating profit for share holders while they are also sensitive to the farming community and have a humanistic, consumer-oriented approach.On positive note, numerous successes have been documented especially with regard to agronomic traits like herbicide resistance, pest resistance and drought tolerance. The high adoption rate of genetically engineered crops and controlled field trials and research in many developing countries and some EU countries are optimistic developments. The need to feed a growing world population, enhancing ability of crops to withstand climate change, and public preference for plant based industrial and pharmaceutical products should drive further research in GM plants and their production worldwide.
Successful commercialization and marketing of transgenic crops and products would require mutual understanding and implementation of international standards and trade policies among nations. In every part of the world, farmers engage in crop production with the aim of providing food, income, raw materials and foreign exchange among others for the citizens. Crop production is the act of cultivating the soil in order to provide food and other materials for man and industrial uses. Crops grown require soil nutrients and water in addition to sunlight to derive the photosynthetic process so as to produce edible products for man’s use. Crop production is climate sensitive with outdoor production activities that depend largely on particular levels of weather conditions. This means that crop production is one of the most sensitive agricultural sectors to climate change. Climate change is the significant and lasting variation in the statistical properties of the average weather condition when considered over long periods of time, regardless of cause . Climate change refers to the variation in the average weather condition attributed directly or indirectly to natural events and human activities which alter the composition of the atmosphere over a period of time. Climate change affects crop production in a number of ways, for example, it leads to variation in the rainfall pattern, altering soil composition and increasing pests and disease migration.
Though some crops might respond favorably to increased atmospheric weather conditions, growing more vigorously and using water more efficiently, higher temperature and change in rainfall patterns often alter areas where crops grow best and affect the makeup of natural plant communities. Weather-related events add further complexity to the science of crop farming,resulting to shortage of food supply and consequently leading to frequent rising commodity prices . There is need for farmers to seek for alternative means of enhancing their productivity through certain adaptation strategies.Adaptation is the adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climate stimuli or their effects. In crop production, certain agricultural ICT tools and gadgets have been developed for precision farming despite climate change challenges.Precision farming refers to information and technology-based agricultural management system to improve crop production efficiency by adjusting farming inputs to specific conditions within each area on a field.