Bangladesh has a growing population and needs to increase food production to ensure food security. Food biotechnology can help increase crop yields and develop stress-tolerant varieties to combat climate change impacts. Several universities and research institutes in Bangladesh are conducting research on crop biotechnology, including developing golden rice with higher vitamin A and Bt brinjal resistant to fruit and shoot borer using genetic engineering. Genome sequencing projects on jute and a fungus pathogen have been completed. While genetically modified crops may increase productivity and nutrition, issues like cross contamination and increased pesticide use need addressing.

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Food Biotechnology in Bangladesh
1.Introduction
Bangladesh is an agro-economoy based country with a large population compared to its land area
and resources. With the country's population projected to reach 192.9 million by 2025 and
economic growth transforming the lives of millions, our food demand is expected to be much
higher than its current growth of production. Such crop production would have to be achieved in
an adverse climatic condition. Therefore, there is a growing need to develop stress tolerant crop
varieties to combat climate change induced disasters like flood, drought and intrusion of salinity.
Improvement of fisheries & livestock, biodiversity conservation, biological and industrial waste
management, health care systems, forestry and environment sectors deserve much attention.
Biotechnology can play important roles to address the above issues.Significant initiatives has
been taken by the Government of Bangladesh to promote biotechnological research and
infrastructure development in the country for enhanced productivity, quality and value of
products, stability of production systems and environmental conservation leading to sustained
food security, poverty alleviation and livelihood security. With an aim to accelerate the research
activities in the field of biotechnology, the government has established the National Institute of
Biotechnology (NIB) under the auspices of Ministry of Science & Technology, as a specialised
Institute in Biotechnology. Soon after its establishment, NIB has been accepted by the national
and international community. Biotechnology has applications in four major industrial areas,
including health care, agriculture, industrial uses of crops and other products like biofuels,
biodegradable plastics etc., and environmental uses. Moreover, biotechnology is not just a
technological matter; its development involves cutting-edge science, political, legal, and
economic variables, and external and internal negotiations and also to address the social and
ethical challenges. A series of derived terms have been coined to identify several branches of
biotechnology namely Green, Red, White, Gold etc. Today we’ll focus on food biotechnology in
Bangladesh.

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2.CropBiotechnologyin Bangladesh
Agricultural biotechnology is one option that developing countries like Bangladesh are
considering to meet food needs, reduce poverty, and enhance environmental sustainability
through improved productivity. The Department of Botany in Dhaka University started a
program on plant biotechnology in the late 1970s with tissue culture of jute. Subsequently, other
research institutes and universities such as the Rajshani University, Chittagong University,
Jahanirnagar University, Khulna University, Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI),
Bangladesh Jute Research Institute (BJRI), Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI),
Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR), and Bangladesh Institute of
Nuclear Agriculture (BINA) also went into tissue culture. They were in addition to non-
governmental organizations (NGOs) such as the Development of Biotechnology and
Environmental Conservation Center (DEBTECH) and Proshika. Plant tissue culture protocols on
plant regeneration and micropropagation have been developed on different crops, fruit trees, and
vegetables and are awaiting commercial use and approval (Choudhury and Islam, 2002). A
limited number of universities and research institutes are doing genetic engineering research,
mostly on genetic transformation of jute, pulses, and rice for salinity tolerance and fungus
resistance (Choudhury, 2004). Dhaka University, Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU),
Rajshahi University (RU), Bangladesh Sugarcane Research Institute (BSRI), BARI, BRRI, and
BINA have started genetic fingerprinting and genetic engineering research. Although facilities
are limited, the gene constructs are borrowed and shared with other laboratories from developed
countries as part of their collaborative research partnership. BRRI developed vitamin A-enriched
Golden Rice by introgressing the provitamin A genes from a selected GM rice line onto its
leading variety BR29, in collaboration with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).
BRRI received royalty free seeds in 2005 for cultivation in Bangladesh, and completed the
second round trial of Golden Rice in its contained facilities. BARI developed fruit and shoot
borer resistant Bt brinjal using the Bangladeshi varieties in collaboration with Maharashtra
Hybrid Seeds Co. Ltd (Mahyco). Biotech brinjal was subjected to field trial on multi-locations
for two years in different BARI research stations under controlled conditions. The scientists’
forum and regulatory officials are convinced that it will be released for commercialization in the
near term. Bt brinjal will be tested jointly by BARI and East-West Seeds Co. Ltd. Similarly, the
Wisconsin University supplied royalty free potato microtubers cv. Katahdin resistant to late

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blight disease for subsequent crossing with promising potato cultivars and development of
transgenic variety for commercial cultivation. The Hawaii University has shown interest for
bilateral cooperation with Bangladesh in providing papaya conferred with resistance against
papaya ringspot virus (PRSV). The material transfer is under process and on receipt, BARI and
East-West Seed Co. Ltd will jointly evaluate the product under controlled field trial for
subsequent commercial release.
3.Help eliminate hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition
There is sufficient capacity in the Bangladesh to produce enough food to feed everyone
adequately; nevertheless, in spite of progress made over the last two decades, many of people
still suffer from chronic hunger. Because of some natural disaster. Using food biotechnology is
ensuring that people have regular access to enough high-quality food. We can help by supporting
policies and political commitments that promote biotech. food and good nutrition and by making
sure that up-to-date information about hunger and malnutrition challenges and solutions is
available and accessible.
4.Make foods more productive and sustainable
Growth in the agriculture sector is one of the most effective means of reducing poverty and
achieving food security.
Biotechnological approaches are needed across the agriculture sector to increase productivity,
conserve natural resources, and use inputs sustainably and efficiently. Such approaches will
require the participation of smallholders, women, indigenous peoples and marginalized groups.
Competition over natural resources, such as land, water and oceans, is intensifying and in many
places is leading to the exclusion of traditional users from resources and markets. Social and
demographic changes in rural areas also affect the labour available for production. The
increasing movement of people and goods, and changes in production practices, give rise to new
threats from pests, diseases and invasive alien species. Climate change reduces the resilience of
production systems and contributes to natural resource degradation. The agriculture sector is
both a contributor to, and impacted by, climate change. Improved practices and reducing

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deforestation and forest degradation offer significant potential for climate change adaptation and
mitigation.
5.Genome sequencing projects in Bangladesh
Jute genome
In 2008, with the funding of the government, the University of Dhaka, DataSoft IT firm and
Bangladesh Jute Research Institute initiated a collaborative genome research
program on jute under the leadership of Dr. Maqsudul Alam who had previously sequenced the
genomes of papaya and rubber.Subsequently, in 2010, the group of scientists
successfully sequenced the genome of jute, through which, Bangladesh became only the second
country after Malaysia, among the developing nations, to have successfully sequenced a plant
genome.
Fungus genome
In 2012, the same group of scientists decoded the genome of Macrophomina phaseolina,
a Botryosphaeriaceae fungus, which is responsible for causing seedling blight, root rot, and
charcoal rot of more than 500 crop and non-crop species throughout the world. The sequencing
took place at the laboratory of Bangladesh Jute Research Institute and was done as part of The
Basic and applied Research on Jute project.
These projects will help to show the importance to decode any kind of important food plant to
make the food more available,disease resistance etc.
6.The Advantages of Genetically Modified Crops
 Better For The Environment
 Resistance To Disease
 Sustainability
 Increased Flavor and Nutrition
 Longer Shelf Life
 Keeps It Affordable
7.The Disadvantages Of Genetically Modified Crops
 Cross Contamination
 Allergies On The Rise
 Less Effective Antibiotics

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8.Conclusion
Food biotechnology technology may possibly be helpful to increase productivity in agriculture
and in reducing seasonal fluctuations in agricultural productions against ever increasing demand
for food and other agricultural products, global climatic changes, scarcities in natural resources
etc. GM cropsmay reduce the environmental and health related problems by reducing the use of
chemical pesticidesand insecticides
9.References
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2. Friends of the Earth, 2008. Who benefits from GM crops? The rise in pesticide use.
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