Plants and plant crops have always been, and will continue to be, of vital importance for humankind. They are an essential source of food, feed, raw materials, energy and pleasure. One of the main concerns in agriculture has always been to improve the quality of seed. Today, at the beginning of the 3rd Millennium, agriculture is confronted with a wide range of complex challenges. With diminishing availability of farming land, climatic changes and the threat of declining water resources, the task is to meet the growing demand for food, feed, fibre, fuel, industrial products and products based on 'functional' plants. Future-oriented, knowledge-based and added-value agriculture will have to become reality. This will mean reduced use and redisposition of resources - in other words, 'Do more with less!' Within this context, the possibilities offered by efficiency developments in conventional seed breeding, supported by gene technology and plant genomic research, will improve the prospects of being able to use our limited natural resources to best effect in the 21st Century. The appropriate use and timely development of these important aspects will ensure sustainable production of food, feed, fibre, fuel and industrial products in the future.
