New study aims to make wheat more disease resistant

A recent international study explains how bread wheat has helped to transform the ancient world on its path to becoming the iconic crop that today helps sustain a global population of eight billion.

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According to Stastista, in the marketing year 2023/24, 785 million tons of wheat were produced globally.

This was slightly down from the 789 million tons produced the year prior, but up on the five-year average of around 777 million tons. Despite this, it is expected that wheat exports will exceed those of 2022/23 and will reach 216 million tons in 2023/24.

The world's biggest producer of wheat in 2023/24 was China at 136,6 million tons. For comparison, South Africa produced around 2,1 million tons of wheat in the 2023/24 marketing year.

Wheat is a very important global commodity and is used to produce staple foods like bread and pasta. As such, it provides a significant portion of the world's calories and nutrients.

Its adaptability to different climates and soils allows it to be grown globally, making it relatively accessible to everyone in the world. As wheat can be stored for long periods of time, it is also a reliable food source during times of drought or scarcity.

Wheat has played an essential role in the development of agriculture and has remained a dietary cornerstone throughout history.

NEW KIND OF AGRICULTURE

A recent major study has 'shed new light on an iconic event in our civilisation that created a new kind of agriculture and allowed humans to settle down and form societies'. This is according to Prof Brande Wulff, a wheat researcher at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, and one of the lead authors of the study.

The study focused particularly on bread wheat, also known as common wheat (Triticum aestivum).

"The secret of bread wheat's success, according to the research by institutes that make up the Open Wild Wheat Consortium (OWWC), lies in the genetic diversity of a wild grass called Aegilops tauschii," the study explained.