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Beyond inspiring tomorrow’s farmers, FFA (formerly Future Farmers of America) also promotes careers in biotechnology. During FFA Week, the organization is making special efforts to encourage young people to learn more about agricultural biotech.
“You might have to go back to the first tractor, the moldboard plow or even hybridization to find something that’s shaped today’s agriculture more than biotechnology,” says an FFA factsheet.
The FFA is an organization promoting education for, and awareness of, careers in the diverse types of work that make up agriculture, including as “farmers, teachers, doctors, scientists, business owners and more.” FFA Week, running Feb. 15-22, 2025, is an annual push to reach out through schools and other organizations to ensure youths get the FFA’s message.
Biotech’s contributions to agriculture
As the FFA notes, biotechnology has become integral to agriculture. Biotech’s contributions to food security and sustainability between 1996-2018 have included:
- increasing crop productivity by 822 million tons;
- conserving biodiversity by saving 231 million hectares of land;
- saving 776 million kilograms of pesticides from being released into the environment;
- reducing CO2 emissions by 23 billion kilograms, equivalent to taking 15.3 million cars off the road for one year;
- helping alleviate poverty by uplifting the economic situation of 16 million to 17 million small farmers and their families, totaling more than 65 million people.
Breakthroughs enabling these improvements include gene editing:
- in plants, to make more productive corn, rice, and potatoes—and reduce waste through longer shelf life, with potatoes that are less likely to bruise and a strawberry with a greatly extended freshness;
- in animals, to help develop birds resistant to avian flu, pigs resistant to deadly diseases, and cattle with shorter hair and greater heat tolerance to better withstand climate challenges.
Biotech also increases sustainability, reducing carbon emissions with biofuels, improving regenerative agriculture, reducing inputs, and making crops more tolerant of climate extremes.
Career opportunities in agricultural biotech
Biotechnologists have an opportunity to make dramatic improvements for farmers and others who rely on agriculture for a living. There are a wide range of jobs available in biotechnology. Some of the careers FFA notes are:
- Cell culture technician
- Research specialist
- Plant biologist
- Military science officer
- Biochemist
- Renewable energy researcher
- Biofuels technician
For students interested in biotechnology careers, FFA recommends a BA degree or higher in the relevant field. FFA also recommends that students learn more about the field by reading up on it, to decide if biotechnology is right for them.
