Lehrman, Anna and Chatzopoulou, Sevasti and Eriksson, Dennis and Jonas, Elisabeth and Levander, Fredrik and Nicolia, Alessandro and Rydhmer, Lotta and Röcklinsberg, Helena and Sandin, Per and Zhu, Li-Hua
(2020).
Shaping our food: an overview of crop and livestock breeding.
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
[Book (author)]
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Abstract
The domestication of plants and animals is a long and on-going process that has shaped not only the domesticated species and the landscape, but also the humans who have domesticated them. For example, the evolution of our immune system has been strongly influenced by the close contact between humans and domestic animals. The changes in domesticated species have been dramatic, from the wild red junglefowl hen raising two clutches of 10 chicks per year, to today’s laying hen producing more than 300 eggs per year. In one hundred years the average wheat yield has increased from two tonnes per hectare to six tonnes per hectare in many European countries. Although part of this increase is due to management techniques, fertilizers, and pesticides, the genetic component of such progress has been substantial.
With an increased knowledge of evolution, the understanding of heredity, and the discovery of chromosomes and genes, we have gone from unintentional selection to advanced breeding programmes. Our ever-increasing knowledge of the mechanisms behind different traits can be used to customize the sources of our food. Thanks to these breeding programmes, we now have access to healthier livestock and crops, and are producing milk, meat, and grain at levels our ancestors could only have dreamed of. With this book we wish to provide an overview of the methods and techniques used in the domestication and development of new agricultural crop varieties and breeds of livestock. We also describe the legislation and discusses different ethical views on the use of biotechnology in crop and animal breeding.
This book is published within the Mistra Biotech research programme, financed by the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research (Mistra) and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU). This second edition is a shortened version of the previous edition. We are grateful to Inger Åhman and Marie Nyman for helpful comments on the manuscript.
Authors/Creators: | Lehrman, Anna and Chatzopoulou, Sevasti and Eriksson, Dennis and Jonas, Elisabeth and Levander, Fredrik and Nicolia, Alessandro and Rydhmer, Lotta and Röcklinsberg, Helena and Sandin, Per and Zhu, Li-Hua |
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Editors: | Lehrman, Anna |
Title: | Shaping our food: an overview of crop and livestock breeding |
Year of publishing : | 2020 |
Number of Pages: | 66 |
Publisher: | Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences |
Associated Programs and Other Stakeholders: | Mistra Biotech |
ISBN for electronic version: | 978-91-981907-1-7 |
Language: | English |
Additional Information: | (second edition) |
Publication Type: | Book (author) |
Article category: | Popular |
Version: | Published version |
Full Text Status: | Public |
Subjects: | (A) Swedish standard research categories 2011 > 4 Agricultural Sciences > 404 Agricultural Biotechnology > Genetics and Breeding (A) Swedish standard research categories 2011 > 6 Humanities > 603 Philosophy, Ethics and Religion > Ethics (A) Swedish standard research categories 2011 > 6 Humanities > 601 History and Archaeology > History of Technology |
URN:NBN: | urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-p-108083 |
Permanent URL: | http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-p-108083 |
ID Code: | 17839 |
Faculty: | LTV - Fakulteten för landskapsarkitektur, trädgårds- och växtproduktionsvetenskap NJ - Fakulteten för naturresurser och jordbruksvetenskap |
Department: | (LTJ, LTV) > Department of Plant Breeding (from 130101) (NL, NJ) > Dept. of Crop Production Ecology |
Deposited By: | SLUpub Connector |
Deposited On: | 16 Oct 2020 08:20 |
Metadata Last Modified: | 15 Jan 2021 19:26 |
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