Seeking Sustainable Protein Sources for Asia and Sub-Saharan AfricaR KVarshneyauthorFounded in 1972, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) is a non-profit, non-political organization conducting agricultural research for development in Asia and subSaharan Africa. It’s an area of the world that is in desperate need of new farming tactics and tools, with more than 25% of its 2 billion people living in poverty and hunger. According to Rajeev Varshney, Ph.D., Research Program Director, Grain Legumes and Director, Center of Excellence in Genomics at ICRISAT, one of the organization’s objectives is to apply scientific innovations to dryland agriculture. This farming method is designed for regions of scant rainfall, focusing on water-retentive tillage methods and the selection of suitable crops, rather than relying on irrigation. “The objective of ICRISAT is to develop superior varieties of crops that can thrive in drought conditions,” Dr. Varshney said. “There’s not much variety within the few crops that are cultivated in Asia and Africa. While breeders have been successful in developing new, hardier crops using traditional approaches, it wasn’t until 2005 that we really started to leverage genomics. Molecular breeding enables us to make strides in developing crops that are truly sustainable in this region”...PigeonpeaGenetics and Genomics2013-08IlluminaArticle