Presentacion de 11th Asian Maize Conference which took place in Beijing, China from November 7 – 11, 2011.

1. Maize in Asia: Trends,
Challenges and Opportunities
BM Prasanna
Director, Global Maize Program
CIMMYT, Int.
Email: b.m.prasanna@cgiar.org

2. Maize in the Developing World
• About 73 per cent of 153
million ha of maize area
worldwide in 2010 was
located in the developing
world.
• Together with rice and wheat,
maize provides at least 30%
of the food calories to more
than 4.5 billion people in 94
developing countries.
• Preferred staple food to 900
million poor people (< 2 USD
per day)

3. Maize in Asia
Countries <3 t/ha Countries >3 t/ha
Area Production Yield Area Production Yield
Country Country
(mha) (mmt) (t/ha) (mha) (mmt) (t/ha)
India 8.50 21.00 2.47 China 31.50 168.00 5.33
Indonesia 3.15 8.40 2.67 Vietnam 1.20 5.50 4.58
Philippines 2.65 6.80 2.57 Thailand 0.97 3.90 4.02
Pakistan 1.05 3.00 2.86 Laos 0.31 1.55 5.00
Nepal 0.85 1.70 2.00 Cambodia 0.18 0.70 3.89
Bhutan 0.04 0.07 1.56 Turkey 0.49 4.00 8.15
Afghanistan 0.15 0.30 2.00 USA 32.89 318.52 9.69
Developing 111.70 405.93 3.63
World 152.51 765.47 5.02
Source: USDA (Dec 2010)
Eight major maize-producing countries in Asia – China, India, Indonesia,
Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam –together, now
produce 98% of Asia’s maize and 26% of global maize.

4. Maize becomes No.1 crop in China since 2007
Chinese maize belt
Each dot equals 50,000 ha
Source: National Bureau of Statistics, 2010

5. The ever increasing demand
• During 2003-08, maize
production increased annually
by 6.0% in Asia, as compared to
5.0% in Latin America, and
2.3% in sub-Saharan Africa.
Between now and 2050, the
demand for maize in the Maize consumption in China
developing world will double,
and by 2025 maize will have
become the crop with the highest
production in the developing
world (~490-500 mmt)!

6. Drivers for maize demand in Asia
Maize use for feed in the seven major Asian countries (China,
India, Indonesia, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam)
has more than tripled from 29 m t in 1980 to 109 m t in 2000!

7. Impressive progress in India, but not quite enough!
Source: Dr Sain Dass

8. Poultry production in India
2002 2009
(in millions)
Broiler 1250 2000
Layer 155 290
Broiler breeder 9.25 15.9
Layer breeder 1.6 3.2
Egg production Broiler production
2600 2350
2400 2150
2200 2001
1950 2002
1995
2000 2003
2000 1750
1800 2005 2004
1550 2005
1600
2006
1350
1400
1200 1150
8.3 % growth 2.65 m t 8.5 % growth 2.4 m t

9. Volatility of Maize Prices
Maize imports for developing country
economies will increase 24% by 2050 –
equalling USD 30 billion.

10. Food security is at risk due to climate change....
In order to meet
global demands,
we will need
60-70%
more food
by 2050.

11. Drought => large annual yield fluctuations in
both sub-Saharan Africa and Asia
6.00
5.00
Grain yield (t ha )
4.00
-1
3.00
2.00
1.00
Maize
Rice
Wheat
0.00
1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Year
Alleviating the effects of drought alone could increase average maize
yields by 35% across “Asia-7” (excluding China), and by 28% in Southwest
China (Gerpacio and Pingali, 2007).

12. Heat stress is
becoming an
increasing reality,
coupled with
drought stress, in
many maize
growing regions in
Asia…

13. Excess water – a recurring theme in some regions
• Episodes of intense rainfall, leading to flooding
• 20 million ha affected in South and Southeast Asia
Waterlogging-prone areas in South & SE Asia

14. An array of biotic stresses in the tropics and subtropics
TLB GLS
Special Issue: Climate Change and Plant Diseases
Ear rots Weevils

15. Stress seldom comes alone….
Drought &
Heat Stress
Stressed plants
Reduced yields Ear rots – low quality
Mycotoxins

16. Mycotoxin contamination
 A serious problem in many
maize-growing countries in
Asia, Africa and Latin
America, affecting long-term
health of humans and
animals, trade and export
markets.
Kenya Malawi Nigeria Uganda Ghana Indonesia Nepal Mexico
Production 2,367,237 3,444,655 7,525,000 1,266,000 1,100,00 17,659,067 1,878,648 24,320,100
(M tons)
Grain loss (%) 20-25 20-25 5-10 20-25 5-10 6-17 4-22 10-25
Mycotoxin 25-30% 9% above 27% 30% above 65-80%; 47%; 50-83%; 20-89%;
incidence (%) above 20 20 ppb 20 ppb; 50% 30-2000 >50 ppb >50 ppb >20 ppb
ppb aflatoxin up to 10 ppb ppb aflatoxin aflatoxin aflatoxin
aflatoxin aflatoxin

17. Sustainability Concerns
• Water: Lowering water
tables and reduced
availability of water for
agricultural purposes
• Nutrient depletion:
Nepal, NE India,
Myanmar, NE
Thailand….
• Soil erosion: S China,
SE Asia
• Deforestation: SE Asia
• Increasing fertilizer
costs, fertilizer scarcity

18. An era of challenges will always be
an era of uncommon opportunities!!

19. Abiotic stress tolerant germplasm being
developed through managed stress screening…
Drought
Waterlogging
Heat

20. Drought Tolerant Maize Varieties for Africa
53 Drought tolerant maize varieties developed under DTMA
by CIMMYT & IITA in partnership with 13 African countries,
occupying nearly 2 million hectares.

21. CIMMYT DT Maize Lines suitable for South & SE Asia
Elite DT lines from CIMMYT-Mexico,
Zimbabwe & Kenya evaluated for drought
tolerance
Lines from CIMMYT DT-populations,
adapted to the tropical Asian region:
• Early maturity – Yellow (Pool 18 Seq)
• Early maturity – white (Pool 16 BN Seq)
• Medium maturity – Yellow (DTPY c9)
• Medium maturity – white (DTPW c9)
• Late maturity – Yellow (Pool 26 Seq)
• Late maturity – White (LP C7& TS c5)
PH Zaidi & team, CIMMYT-India

22. Emphasis on heat tolerance of elite products
Combined heat and drought donors
DTMA Pedigree GY (t ha-1)
91 CML311/MBR C3 Bc F12-2-2-2 0.63
238 DTPYC9-F46-1-2-1-2 0.59
. La Posta Seq C7-F64-2-6-2-2 0.55
62 CML435 0.49
231 DTPYC9-F143-5-4-1-2 0.46
44 CML442 0.19
Trial mean 0.24
Drought tolerance ≠ heat tolerance ≠ Drought + heat tolerance

23. Philippines takes lead in approving / commercializing
Bt maize and Glyphosate tolerant maize
In Philippines, about 200,000 small farmers planted 350,000
hectares (ha) of Bt maize farms in 2008, as compared to the
10,769 ha in 2003, when the crop was approved for
commercialization. (ISAAA)

24. Disease Phenotyping

25. Improved maize germplasm from CIMMYT-Colombia, Mexico and
Zimbabwe helps hill maize farmers in Nepal and Bhutan…
Non-QPM Variety (ICAV305)
Yellow QPM variety
On-farm trials of two GLS-resistant maize varieties in the hills of Bhutan,
along with local check Yangtsipa

26. Fine mapping and
developing breeder-
ready markers for some
major maize diseases
Sliding windows-chromosome 2
Maize Streak Virus
6e-04
5e-04
4e-04
Var
3e-04
2e-04
1e-04
Turcicum Leaf
0e+00
Blight 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000
Marker
Gray Leaf Spot

27. Nutritionally enriched maize in Asia
Poshilo Makai-1 Yunrui-1 (QPM + GLS resistance) Yunrui-8 (QPM + high oil)
HQPM-1 (parents derived using QPM version of Vivek Hybrid-
CML161 and CML163) 9 (using CML as donors)

28. MAS in breeding for Provitamin A enriched maize
Deep
orange
ears
+
+
MAS for LycE MAS for CrtRB1
Increase in β-carotene
from 1-2 ppm to >10 ppm

29. Science (20 Nov 2009)
 Palomero genome about 22%
(140 Mb) smaller than that of
B73. Large number of
unreported sequences => large
pool of unexplored genetic
diversity

30. Next-generation sequencing and HT genotyping
454/FLX
Genotyping-by-Sequencing
• GBS developed at Cornell
– data for 500,000 SNPs
AB SOLiDTM
and indels for $30 per
sample at 96-plex
sequencing (low depth,
high coverage).
• Buckler lab is successfully
implementing 384-plex
Solexa
sequencing, which should
reduce run costs to
<$15/sample.
• GBS cheaper than yield
testing at one location!

31. Genomic Selection
● Proposed by
Meuwissen et al.
(2001)
● Complete coverage
of genome with
markers – high
density genotyping
● All QTL in linkage
disequilibrium with at
least one marker
● No QTL size
thresholds needed
● No concerns of
missing heritability
and Beavis effect

32. Rapid-cycle genomic selection

33. DH technology for accelerated maize breeding
DH line development with in vivo
haploid induction approach
Donor Inducer
Induction of haploidy
Haploid
plants
Artificial chromosome doubling
Doubled
haploid
plants
Coupling DH development with MAS for key traits can greatly
enhance breeding efficiency.

34. Tropically adapted haploid inducers
New tropical
Inducer lines
Induction rate ~10%
Temperate inducer
George Mahuku and Team at CIMMYT-Mexico, in collaboration with Univ. of Hohenheim

35. Phenotypic capabilities are evolving!
Development of a new
generation of
automated / semi-
automated technologies
to monitor plant
characteristics and
performance

36. Precision phenotyping
• Advances in phenotyping
should not be construed
only from the viewpoint of
instrumentation.
• Characterizing field sites,
experimental designs,
selection of appropriate
traits, and statistical
methodologies, all have an
equally important role to
play in phenotypic data
collection and utilization.

37. Seeds of Discovery (SeeD), a project funded by Mexico
for the benefit of the World Maize Community
Breeding
Gene Bank Introgression Programs
Web Portal Pipeline
Trait values
Environ- Common
mental backgrounds
adaptation
Genetic Cultivars
makeup
Breeding
Accessions Information Parental stocks
materials
 Generating high quality phenotypic data of genetically
heterogeneous populations
 Genotyping/resequencing using next-generation sequencers
 Identifying favorable alleles/haplotypes for developing improved
germplasm with a broader genetic base

38. Conservation agriculture and enabling
policies have to complement genetic
enhancement
• Improving system productivity
• Nutrient cycling
• Site specific nutrient management
• Increased fertilizer, water and fuel use
efficiencies
CSISA
SIMLESA

39. Precision agriculture for smallholders possible….
Farmer in Gujarat accessing the web (IBM India, 2010)

40. Human Resources in Asia

41. “It is not the strongest of the species who
survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one
most responsive to change.”
Let us be the difference we want to make to the world!