Potential gains from a half-century of genetic engineering in rice production

Abstract

This study develops a methodology to assess the impacts of input use efficiency enhancement in crop production. Here we investigate fifty years of genetic engineering research aimed at increasing nitrogen use efficiency in rice, focusing on effects on yield and fertilizer use. Our meta-analysis indicates that global adoption of genetically engineered rice could substantially impact agricultural systems, showing the potential to increase food production or, alternatively, to maintain current production levels with a notable reduction in cultivated land and a substantial decrease in global fertilizer use. Yield impacts are greater in developing countries, and gene editing approaches outperform conventional transgenic methods in yield. Among all targeted gene types, efforts to improve transporter gene function have shown the most significant yield improvements. Our findings indicate that genetically engineered crops can enhance productivity and sustainability in agriculture. Global adoption of genetically engineered rice either benefits food production or maintains current production levels with a reduction in cultivated land and global fertilizer use, as revealed by a meta-analysis of 50-year genetic engineering research.