A recent article in the journal Nature highlights the significant impact that fungal infections have on the global food supply chain. The authors, Eva Stukenbrock and Sarah Gurr, explain that fungi are incredibly efficient in destroying crops, producing spores that can remain in soil for up to 40 years. Additionally, some fungi can travel thousands of kilometres, with wheat stem rust even being able to cross continents.
Fungi can also adapt effectively through mutations and sexual recombination. They are particularly damaging to crops that provide important calories, such as wheat, which makes up 18% of global caloric intake each year. A professor from the University of Exeter, Sarah Gurr, explains that all of the world’s most important calorie crops, including rice, wheat, maize, soya beans and potatoes, can be affected by different strains of fungi.
The impact of fungal infections is not limited to direct crop loss. Commodity crops, such as bananas and coffee, are also susceptible, damaging the income of many countries and preventing consumers from buying critical calorie crops. The researchers predict that farmers worldwide lose between 10% and 23% of their annual yield to fungi, with a further 10-20% lost post-harvest. This results in between 600 million and 4 billion people missing out on their daily recommended caloric intake.
Climate change only exasperates the problem, as fungi thrive in hot climates and are now moving towards the poles. Changing temperatures can cause normally harmless endophytic fungi to become pathogenic, while monocultures that dominate modern agriculture are a feast for fungi. Fungicides are not always effective and can lead to resistance.
There are, however, several potential solutions, such as recognizing signs of fungal infection and using early warning systems to prevent outbreaks. Additionally, focusing on using compounds that can target multiple processes instead of single-target fungicides and breeding resistance genes into plants can help protect crops. However, legal issues surrounding gene-editing could limit the use of such methods in some countries.
In conclusion, preventing the threat to human health posed by fungal crop diseases requires greater engagement with the problem, as well as investment in research from governments, private companies and philanthropic organizations. Recognizing the signs of fungal infection, using comprehensive protection measures and investing in new, innovative approaches are essential steps required to combat the impact of fungal infections on the global food supply chain.
