Accelerated breeding modernization: a global blueprint for driving genetic gains, climate resilience, and food security in rice

Sanjay K. Katiyar, Reshmi Rani Das, Lekha T. Pazhamala, Jérôme Bartholomé, Girish Chandel, Atugonza Bilaro, Maxwell Darko Asante, Khandakar Md Iftekharuddaula, Mirza M Islam, Ram Baran Yadaw, Ramlakhan Verma, Thati Srinivas, Chandra Mohan Yeshala, Herminio Abade, Viviane Raharinivo & Ruth Musila

Theoretical and Applied Genetics; November 6 2025; vol. 138; article 293

Key message

ABM-BOx is a mission-critical transformation engine, built to fast-track genetic gains, boost climate resilience, and modernize outdated breeding programs into agile, data-driven, demand-responsive innovation platforms setting a global benchmark.

Abstract

Rice plays a central role in global food security as climate threats continue to rise. Fast-tracking genetic gains and developing climate-resilient, market-preferred varieties require a bold, system-wide transformation of rice breeding practices worldwide. Baseline diagnostics of more than 25 national rice breeding programs across the Global South revealed critical bottlenecks: obsolete breeding strategy and scheme, fragmented workflows, limited technology access, and poor integration of seed system. This highlights the urgent need of breeding modernization to tackle rising food security risks. We introduce Accelerated Breeding Modernization-Breeding and Operational Excellence (ABM-BOx), a globally scalable framework to transform rice breeding programs into modern, data-driven, impact-oriented systems. ABM-BOx operationalizes a paradigm shift by translating the breeder’s equation into real-world impact through two synergistic engines: Breeding Excellence (BE) and Operational Excellence (OE). BE focuses on enhancing genetic gains through demand-driven breeding, strategic parental selection, recurrent population breeding, simulation-driven breeding scheme optimization, genomic selection, and predictive breeding. These strategies increase selection intensity, selection accuracy and shorten the breeding cycle. OE ensures speed, efficiency, and scalability through speed breeding-field based platforms, smart breeding-digital tools, breeding informatics-AI-powered decision tools, strategic costing-optimizing investments, and resilient seed systems. Additionally, Capacity Reinforcement and Functional Transformation-Accelerated Breeding Modernization (CRaFT-ABM) strengthens institutional capacity by focusing on talent, infrastructure, governance, and networks. More than a framework, ABM-BOx is a mission-critical transformation engine that drives innovation, speed, and impact to empower rice breeding efforts globally.

See https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00122-025-05060-1

Figure 1:

Evolving Dynamics Between CGIAR and NARES Rice Breeding Programs (2020–2030). The figure depicts the shifting alignment between CGIAR global rice breeding and the national programs visualized as word clouds over a decade. In 2020, both systems were closely aligned through shared methodologies and MET-driven evaluation. By 2025, CGIAR’s transition to cyclic, data-driven breeding powered by GS, digital tools, and BE-OE principles created a growing disconnect, as most NARES programs lag in modernization. Without urgent reforms, this gap may widen into structural dissociation by 2030. The figure highlights this trajectory and underscores the critical need to transform NARES programs through adoption of accelerated breeding modernization. Abbreviations: GS, Genomic Selection; MET, Multi-Environment Trial; BMS, Breeding Management System; B4R, Breeding 4 Results; EBS, Enterprise Breeding System; SSD, Single Seed Descent; QTL, Quantitative Trait Locus; NARES, National Agricultural Research and Extension Systems; CGIAR, Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research; BE, Breeding Excellence; and OE, Operational Excellence