gene (Masle et al., 2005); these confer some tolerance to water deficits or increase water-use efficiency. Promising constructs of the DREB gene have been produced in rice, wheat and chickpea (Bennett, 2006).

Modern biotechnology, no matter how successful at increasing yield or increasing disease and pest resistance, will not replace the need for traditional crop breeding, release and dissemination processes.

The products of most current biotechnology research are available to farmers through the medium of seed, and will therefore still go through current national registration, testing and release procedures. The same constraints to adoption by farmers apply for GM and non-GM organisms. There are arguments for shortening testing and release procedures in the case of existing varieties that have their resistance "updated" against new strains of disease. In India a new version of a widely grown pearl millet variety (HHB67) was approved for release that incorporates resistance to a new and emerging race of downy mildew (identified by DNA finger-printing and incorporated using MAS backcrossing) (ICRISAT, 2006). Only a few countries currently have biosafety legislation or research capacities that allow for testing GM crops and assessing and understanding the structure of wild genetic resources (see 3.2.2.2.3).

Livestock

There have been rapid developments in the use of molecular genetics in livestock over the past few decades.

Good progress has been made in developing complete genome maps for the major livestock species (initial versions already exist for cattle and poultry). DNA-based tests for genes or markers affecting traits that are difficult to measure currently, like meat quality and disease resistance, are being sought. However, genes of interest have differing effects in breeds/lines from different genetic backgrounds, and in different production environments. When these techniques are used, it is necessary to check that the expected benefits are achieved. Because of the cost-effectiveness of current performance recording and evaluation methods, new molecular techniques are used to augment, rather than replace, conventional selection methods with the aim of achieving, relevant, cost-effective, publicly acceptable breeding programs.

Biotechnologies in the livestock sector are projected to have a future impact on poverty reduction.

At present, rapid advances in biotechnologies in both livestock production and health hold much promise for both poverty alleviation and environmental protection (Makkar and Viljoen, 2005). Areas of particular note include new

generation vaccines and transgenic applications to enhance production (Cowan and Becker, 2006). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology can be utilized to reduce the methane production of cattle (Cowan and Becker, 2006) and grain crops can now be genetically manipulated to lower nitrogen and phosphorous levels in animal waste. Such tools can also be utilized to characterize indigenous animal genetic resources to both understand key factors in disease resistance and adaptation and further protect local breeds. Nevertheless, the impact on poverty reduction and safety of many of these technologies is currently unknown (Nangju, 2001; Cowan and Becker, 2006).

3.2.1.4 Genetic engineering

Modern biotechnological discoveries include novel genetic engineering technologies such as the injection of nucleic acid into cells, nuclei or organelles; recombinant DNA techniques (cellular fusion beyond the taxonomic family and gene transfer between organisms) (CBD, 2000). The products of genetic engineering, which may consist of a number of DNA sequences assembled from a different organism, are often referred to as "transgenes" or "transgene constructs". Public research organizations in both high- and low-income countries and the private sector are routinely using biotechnology to understand the fundamentals of genetic variation and for genetic improvement of crops and livestock. Currently, most of the commercial application of genetic engineering in agriculture comes through the use of genetically modified (GM) crops. The commercial use of other GM organisms, such as mammals, fish or trees is much more limited.

Plants

Adoption of commercially available GM commodity crops has primarily occurred in chemical intensive agricultural systems in North and South America.

The two dominating traits in commercially available crop plants are resistance to herbicides and insects (Bt). Resistance is primarily to two broad spectrum herbicides: glyphosate and glufosinate. Resistance against insects is based on traits from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). The four primary GM crop plants in terms of global land area are soybean (57%), maize (25%), cotton (13%) and canola/oilseed rape (5%) (James, 2006) with the the US (53%), Argentina (18%), Brazil (11%) and Canada (6%) as major producers. In Asia, GM cotton production occurs in smaller scale systems in India (3.7%) and China (3.5%) (James, 2006). Sixteen other countries make up the remaining area (4.8%) of global GM crop production (James, 2006). GM crops are mostly used for extractive products (e.g., lecitines and oil from soybean, starch from maize) or for processed products such as cornflakes, chips or tortillas. Whole grain GM maize is only consumed as "food aid" sent to famine areas, while some parts of GM cotton plants are used as animal feed. A great diversity of novel traits and other crops plants (e.g., for pharmaceutical and industrial purposes) are under