CRISPR gene editing is reshaping the future of agriculture, offering the potential to fortify crops against harsh conditions, improve crop quality, and optimize yields – As the agricultural landscape evolves, CRISPR emerges as a powerful tool to ensure food security and sustainability.

In the past year, numerous places and communities worldwide faced the devastating effects of extreme weather conditions. Frequent and severe droughts, storms, and heat waves are causing extensive harm to food production, thereby posing a significant threat to global food security.

To tackle food insecurity due to climate change, researchers are leveraging CRISPR technology to enhance staple food crops and make them more resilient to extreme environments.

WHAT IS CRISPR?

Before we dig deep into what CRISPR stands for and how it works, let’s take a step back to understand the link between genes, climate, crops, and all of this funky stuff.

As the planet gets warmer due to climate change, abiotic stress is becoming a big concern. You see, plants have genes that help them sense and respond to the environment’s temperature. These genes help the plant cope with the weather so they can still grow and develop in response to temperature changes. However, persistent harsh weather conditions induce severe cellular damage in plants and ultimately kill them. Sources of abiotic stress for plants include drought, excess water, high soil salinity, heat, cold, oxidative stress, pollution, and heavy metal toxicity among others. These affect and limit crop productivity, compromise nutritional quality, and logically, decrease global food security.

For this reason, understanding and modifying genes could help us improve the yield of staple foods amid the climate crisis.

Historically, this was done using selective breeding- a technique that consists of crossing different plants to develop crops with desired characteristics, better taste, higher yields, or enhanced productivity. This traditional method is rather labor-intensive, time-consuming, and frequently inconsistent as it relies on breeding techniques. As climate change continues to worsen, there’s a pressing need for a faster, more precise method to enhance crops.

One of the promising techniques to combat climate change consists of editing plant genomes using molecular tools. Genome editing is a technology that allows scientists to make precise changes to the DNA of an organism. It enables the addition, removal, or alteration of DNA in the genome. And, one of the well-known genome editing technologies is CRISPR-Cas9, which is faster, cheaper, more accurate. For instance, cold tolerance in plants is enhanced by introducing genes encoding anti-freeze proteins or transcription factors involved in cold acclimation into plants. The CBF1 gene protects CRISPR-modified tomatoes against cold and chilling injuries.

Source: Khokhar, et. al (2023) Genetic modification strategies for enhancing plant resilience to abiotic stresses in the context of climate change

Think of CRISPR as a cut-and-paste tool that allows you to change and insert new pieces of DNA with the aim, in our case, to increase plant resistance to harsh environments.

It was discovered by French microbiologist Emmanuelle Charpentier and US biochemist Jennifer Doudna, honored with the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this scientific breakthrough.

CRISPR’s application to food was already underway in the early years. As pointed out in her biography, two food scientists from Danisco, a Danish company specializing in fermented dairy products published a paper in March 2007, that showcased one of the initial uses of CRISPR in food.

THE CRISPR PROCESS

If you are interested in learning more about the different steps, we recommend you watch this video. ​​

APPLICATIONS OF CRISPR IN AGRIFOOD

AgTech is an ever-evolving sector and the CRISPR technology is positioning itself as a transformative solution offering a multitude of applications. This groundbreaking technology not only accelerates traditional breeding processes but also opens new avenues for optimizing nutritional content, a critical factor in managing global food security.

Some applications of CRISPR in the agriculture industry include:

• Improving resistance to stressful environmental conditions: Climate change brings either intense drought or increased rainfall and floods, which could completely devastate farmlands. Improving crops’ resistance to extreme weather conditions could ensure food security despite the continued warming of the planet.
• Fortifying crop nutrients: Based on a recent survey, almost 3.1B people could not afford a healthy diet in 2020, while 45M children are malnourished. Using CRISPR technology, we can create more nutritious plant varieties. For example, through genetic modifications to a plant, it becomes feasible to increase its production of specific vitamins, zinc, iron, and other essential nutrients.
• Making plants more productive: Our population reached the 8B mark last year, and it’s expected that 670M people will face hunger in 2030. CRISPR can help feed our growing population by editing the proteins involved in photosynthesis to produce more plants using fewer resources.
• Improving resistance to pests and diseases: Infections in plants can cause revenue loss for producers, as well as threaten entire crop varieties. To avoid these scenarios, we can improve crops’ resistance to pests and diseases, simultaneously making them less reliant on pesticides. which also makes them less reliant on pesticides.
• Improving commercial properties: CRISPR can modify crops to not bruise easily, improving their shape, size, color and texture and making them more appealing to consumers.
• Prolonging shelf life: CRISPR can help extend the shelf life of produce, which could help reduce food waste and increase the availability of fresh produce for more people.

COMPANIES OPERATING THE SECTOR

With a wide range of applications, it’s no wonder several companies have sprung up to use CRISPR technology in a bid to make our food systems more resilient and sustainable. Over 500 CRISPR-developed products are advancing globally, from research to near-commercialization.

According to recent industry statistics from our own FoodTech Data Navigator, around the world there are over 50 AgTech companies using “DNA technology” to produce improved crops and feed the world population. Since 2013, they have raised a total of €2.3B, which resulted in market’s CAGR from 2019-2022 to be at 54%.

In late 2021, the Japanese company, Sanatech Seed, began selling CRISPR-edited tomatoes with elevated levels of the amino acid GABA to promote relaxation, reduce blood pressure, and improve sleep.

Another startup in the space is Singapore-based Singrow. The company, which is a spin-off from the National University of Singapore (NUS), specializes in developing innovative AgriTech (Agtech) solutions for producing premium-quality produce. It uses its proprietary platform Singrow Smart Farm, which combines advanced genomics technology with proprietary crop varieties and patented farming protocols, to develop the best-quality fruits and vegetables, like non-GMO strawberry varieties.

Singrow recently raised a seed-round funding of $1.6M to build its first robotic system for vertical farming operations. Currently, it has expanded its operations to Malaysia and Thailand to serve the B2C, and B2B space in the Food and Agriculture Tech market segments.

BetterSeeds is an Israeli Agtech company that focuses on developing innovative solutions for crop improvement through its disruptive technology EDGE™ (Efficient Delivery of Gene Editing). The company has raised a total of $12M in funding to date and recently acquired the business unit of an Israeli seed company to demonstrate its commitment to the genetic improvement of crops to secure the food supply.

Missouri-based biotech company Agragene focuses on developing gene-editing tools for crop protection. It has developed Precision-Guided Sterile Insect Technology™ (pgSIT™), which is a biological crop pest control solution that is pesticide, chemical, and radiation-free.

Agragene has raised a total of $7.34M since its foundation, with its latest funding round led by BioGenerator raising a total of $2M.

California-based startup Conscious Foods, a purpose-driven brand launched by FoodTech company Pairwise, is a pioneer in producing gene-edited food products using CRISPR technology. The company’s first product, Conscious Greens, is a nutrient-dense, leafy salad developed to make fresh fruits and vegetables more accessible to consumers. Conscious Foods is focused on lowering the barriers that prevent people from consuming more fresh fruits and vegetables, and it is dedicated to providing consistently fresh, delicious, and convenient healthy food options.

The company has raised $115M in funding through two rounds, demonstrating its commitment to leveraging CRISPR technology to develop innovative and nutritious food products.

Disclaimer: This list of companies is not exhaustive and only features certain products for demoing purposes – full list available via the FoodTech Data Navigator. 

PERCEPTION AND CHALLENGES

The perception of CRISPR technology in agriculture is generally positive with a focus on its potential to address food security challenges, improve crop productivity, and enhance crop resilience to climate change. However, there are challenges faced by this technology in its implementation:

1. The regulation of CRISPR-edited crops has lagged behind the pace of development, and regulatory authorities are facing challenges in keeping up with complexities and risk evaluation.
2. There are concerns about the potential risks associated with gene editing, such as unintended changes in the genome or the introduction of new genes that could lead to unforeseen consequences.
3. The long-term effects of genetically engineered crops on the environment need to be carefully considered, as well as the potential impact of CRISPR technology on food safety and public perception
4. Public opinion on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and CRISPR technology can vary, with some individuals expressing concerns about the potential risks and consequences of these technologies. CRISPR edits plant DNA precisely for desired traits without adding foreign DNA, which means it isn’t always considered to be a GMO. A plant is usually considered genetically modified (GM) by scientists and regulatory bodies if it has undergone a process where genes from unrelated species like bacteria, insects, or animals were transferred into its genetic makeup. However, the regulations for these crops differ by country due to varying definitions of GMOs, existing regulations, and specific techniques used.
5. The control and ownership of CRISPR technology pose challenges in terms of access and affordability for smaller-scale farmers. Questions about intellectual property rights and equitable distribution of benefits need to be addressed.

Understanding these perceptions and challenges is crucial for the responsible and effective deployment of CRISPR technology in agriculture, ensuring that it aligns with societal values, ethical standards, and environmental sustainability goals.

If you’re interested in learning more about this sector – check out the Food Data Navigator and book a free demo today! Want to learn more about AgriFoodTech? Forward Fooding is the world’s first collaborative platform for FoodTech Data Intelligence and Corporate Startup Collaboration. To learn more visit: forwardfooding.com or contact us at info@forwardfooding.com.