Nuclear Technology Quietly Powering Malaysia's Push For Better Crops

MACHANG, Oct 26 (Bernama) -- Few people know that nuclear technology is being used to develop tapioca varieties with the potential for higher yields and faster maturity.

The Malaysian Nuclear Agency is using gamma radiation to research crops with improved traits, including tapioca with shorter harvesting times compared to conventional varieties.

Dr. Zaiton Ahmad, director of the Agrotechnology and Biosciences Division at the Malaysian Nuclear Agency, said the technology induces genetic changes in plants before they undergo a screening process to identify varieties with the desired traits.

She said that besides tapioca, the research also covers padi, bananas, Napier grass, taro, kenaf and various types of flowers.

"For tapioca, we aim to achieve high yields and a shorter maturity period, while for padi, the target is high yields as well as resistance to disease, floods and drought," she said.

"For Napier grass, we want to increase biomass production substantially and raise the protein content for livestock," she told Bernama recently.

Zaiton said a screening process is carried out to select plants showing the desired genetic changes, while varieties that fail to meet the criteria are not carried forward for breeding.

Tackling public perceptions of the safety of food produced through nuclear technology, she said irradiated plants do not become radioactive as the process merely exposes them to ionising radiation.

The method does not make crops radioactive, she emphasised, clarifying a misunderstanding among some members of the public who assume that agricultural produce developed using nuclear technology is unsafe to eat.

"Many people are confused when they hear the term 'nuclear tapioca' because they assume the crop has become radioactive, when in fact it has only been exposed to radiation to induce genetic changes," she said.

She said research and development of new crop varieties also faces hurdles, most notably public stigma and the substantial funding needed to carry out studies.

According to her, the tapioca now under research has the potential to be registered as a new variety in Malaysia, while the genetically modified Napier grass is undergoing field trials with a local livestock company.

The padi varieties produced through the technology, however, have already been registered and commercialised.

Zaiton said collaboration with industry players is crucial to expanding the use of varieties identified as suitable through research, so the benefits reach the wider agricultural sector.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Nuclear Agency research officer Mustapha Akil said the research began in 2021 and uses white tapioca as the base plant.

Gamma radiation is applied once to stem cuttings before planting, followed by several generations of breeding, screening and selection.

He said the research is carried out in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

After five years of research, the agency expects its gamma-irradiated cassava variety to be introduced for wider use within the next two years.

So far, it has found yields to be very high, up to 198 per cent compared with the original variety, while the harvest period can be cut from 11 to 12 months to just six.

--BERNAMA