Tilting the scale towards Plant Science…in Argentina

Abstract

Is Plant Science regarded as a socially valuable activity? Is the support to Plant Science adequate and effective? Can the current research enterprise provide effective support to the agricultural sector? This type of questions have driven the analyses included in this lecture. Investment in agriculturerelated research topics and specifically in Plant Science are examined in some Latin American countries and, particularly in Argentina. From a national perspective, the reasons to support plant science research may be related to the importance of agriculture in the national gross domestic product (GDP). In Latin America, the average contribution of agriculture to GDP is about 5 %. Plant-derived products contribute more than 40 % to Argentine exports. Food and agricultural research and development (R&D) spending relative to agricultural GDP in Latin America as a whole, and, specifically in Argentina, is only about 1 %, much lower than the high-income countries average of 2.5 %. Yet, in other parts of the world, return estimates to research investment in agriculture strongly indicate it is profitable, and that less-than-adequate funding can have long term negative effects on the country’s economy. Is Plant Science research innovative and are approaches dynamic and flexible? It has been concluded that continued food demand growth, in a scenery of increasing environmental concerns, requires redefining the research enterprise to meet these complex challenges. Measures towards this goal should include a redesign of higher education programs in agriculture to make them more attractive, stimulation of migration of research capacity from traditional to innovative topics, specifically by young, well trained scientists, increased attention targeted to site-specific research and stronger links with the private sector. Plant scientists can and should assume active roles in this transformation process.