The Changing Global Landscape for Food and Agricultural Research and Development

As the 21^st century unfolds the old order of national investments in food and agricultural R&D are changing in ways that may have profound implications for agricultural innovation worldwide.  The policy (including intellectual property) landscapes for food and agricultural R&D are also changing, in some respects substantially so, with consequences for the innovation incentives and investments in science for food and agriculture in general and the plant biosciences in particular.  Public investments in food and agricultural R&D in rapidly-developing, middle-income countries are on the ascendancy, now eclipsing investments in the rich countries.  The private- versus public-sector roles are also changing, but with large differences among countries in the pace and nature of these changes.  This address will present and interpret new evidence on these global R&D investment trends, with an eye to their innovation, agricultural productivity and food security implications in the decades ahead