Weatherwatch: scientists develop 'speed breeding' to feed rising population

Researchers are developing a system to enable six harvests a year of staple food crops that can survive climate change

Scientists are engaged in a race against time to breed staple crops that can both survive climate change and yield bigger harvests. Their aim is to feed a growing population in a warming world.

The method used for centuries of growing one crop a year in variable weather conditions and then selecting the seeds from the best plants is no longer viable in fast-changing climatic conditions. Scientists are concerned that for some years there have been few improvements in yields of grain.