Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources

Forestry is the science and art of generating, managing, developing, utilizing, preserving, and restoring forests, woods, and related resources for the benefit of humans and the environment. Modern forestry has grown in sync with natural resource management to a significant extent. As a result, professional foresters have been more active in activities such as soil, water, and animal resource protection. 

Plant breeding refers to the science of modification or alteration of plant traits in order to produce desired characteristics. As a matter of fact, plant breeding can be accomplished through different techniques ranging from selective plant breeding to complex molecular techniques. Moreover, plant breeding is commonly practiced by gardeners and farmers, as well as by plant breeders who are being employed by organizations such as crop-specific industries, universities, government institutions, and research centers.

Agronomy is a branch of agricultural science that primarily deals with the integrated and holistic perspective of agriculture. Derived from the word ‘Agros’ which means ‘field and management’, agronomy is basically the study of crop development and soil management. It is important for you to know that agronomy careers are dedicated to improving soil quality and crop production alongside solving other agricultural problems like those related to pests, weeds, resource management, and waste management. 

Agricultural Biotechnology, also known as Agritech, is a branch of agricultural science that primarily deals with the basic understanding and genetic manipulation of various agricultural products in order to increase their efficiency and productivity. In fact, agricultural biotechnology involves the use of various scientific techniques such as genetic engineering, molecular markers, tissue culture, and molecular diagnostics in order to modify living organisms like plants, microorganisms, and animals. Moreover, agricultural biotechnology improves the breeders’ ability to improve their crops or livestock through the modification and identification of certain genes. 

Food science is primarily the branch of applied sciences that coalesces the fundamentals of physical sciences, biochemistry, and chemical engineering. It aims to study and analyze the chemical and biological nature of different food items. In simple terms, food science and technology mainly deals with the processing, manufacturing, treatment, distribution, as well as preservation of food items.