An Holistic Approach to Evaluate the Potential Productivity of Unconventional Crops

Summary

Emphasis is put in this presentation on raw materials for durable products, that is products physically stable to be handled and traded on the world market, while allowing stock to buffer for temporary surplus and timing of sales.

Research on crops should not only increase the cultivation efficiency of conventional crops but should also include domestication of crops that match the potentials of up-to-date know-how in the food processing sciences and balance energy benefit appraisals of crop produced chemicals with chemicals synthesised in the realm of petrochemical industries.

While an holistic approach is suggested, for setting the sights of future crop sciences, the type of research would stimulate the challenge for entrepreneurs to develop new agri-processing industries.

Genetic efficiency of crop species and their varieties will be discussed, desiring more knowledge on formation of chemicals - energy content, value and variations under stress application - photo (morphogenetic) efficiency, desirable ratios for root, shoot, product storage organs, as well as (fossil) energy input/output efficiency of crops. It is contended that ways and means can be found to produce more valuable crop constituents when the performance characteristics of still undomesticated crops are exploited.

Although systematic work still has to be started, even on many conventional crops, a few unconventional crops are mentioned that seem to have potential value when viewed holistically. There should be an EC-strategy for an inter-institutional databank to register the genetic expressions - crop production characteristics - performed in various standardised or known climates and standardised rhizo-conditions.