When faba bean gall disease arrived in Ethiopia about a decade ago, the disease quickly took over smallholder farmer Desta Woldearegay’s fields – destroying the precious harvest that her family relied on for food and income. 

When asked which of the esteemed scientists he is most proud to join as a Fellow for the Australian Association of Animal Sciences (AAAS), the answer comes easily for Professor Phil Vercoe. 

Gene editing and plant domestication are essential to protect food supplies in a worsening climate, according to an international team of researchers, led by The University of Western Australia.