Adoption of improved crop varieties limited biodiversity losses, terrestrial carbon emissions, and cropland expansion in the tropics.

ABSTRACT: Research investments in crop improvements, including by national and international agricultural research centers, have made significant contributions to raising yields of staple food crops in developing countries. Although mostly intended to improve food security and rural incomes, innovations in crop production also have major implications for the environment. Building on the latest productivity estimates from historical crop improvements in developing countries and using a gridded (0.25 degrees) equilibrium model of global agriculture, we assess the impacts of improved crop varieties on cropland use, threatened biodiversity, and terrestrial carbon stocks over 1961-2015. We replicate a historical baseline and produce a counterfactual scenario which shows the impact of omitting productivit

SUBMITTER: Baldos ULC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11831202 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature