Integration of Next-Generation Breeding Approaches to Enhance Crop Adaptability Under Adverse Climatic Conditions

Climate change adversely impacts the quantity and quality of agricultural products, posing a serious threat to global food security, sustainable development, and poverty reduction. If left unaddressed, it could lead to a 20% increase in hunger and malnutrition by 2050. Enhancing agricultural adaptation to extreme climatic conditions is therefore essential. However, conventional breeding, which depends on existing genetic diversity and 238phenotypic selection, can be time-consuming and costly. To accelerate crop improvement and bolster food security, integrating traditional breeding with modern approaches is essential. Genomic advancements are driving more sustainable agriculture and increasing crop resilience to climate-related stresses. Next-generation breeding techniques—such as high-throughput phenotyping, advanced sequencing, trait mapping, genomic-assisted breeding, gene editing, and speed breeding—support the development of superior crop varieties capable of withstanding biotic and abiotic stresses. Artificial intelligence further aids agricultural research by analyzing large datasets and optimizing breeding strategies, enhancing precision phenotyping and minimizing errors. This chapter reviews the major constraints posed by climate change and their effects on agriculture. It also explores the role of multi-omics approaches—including genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics—in understanding the molecular and physiological adaptations in tolerant crop varieties, offering insights for advancing climate-resilient agriculture.