One agronomist's wheat is credited with saving a billion lives

In the mid-20th century, agronomist Norman Borlaug developed new, high-yielding, disease-resistant varieties of dwarf wheat that produced far more grain per acre than traditional strains. Introduced across Mexico, India and Pakistan in the 1950s and 1960s, they helped these nations dramatically increase food production and stave off famine - the heart of what became known as the Green Revolution.

The impact was enormous. India and Pakistan nearly doubled wheat yields within a few years, transforming from food-deficit nations toward self-sufficiency.

Borlaug is often credited with saving a billion or more people from starvation.

For this work he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 - one of the few scientists honoured for agriculture. The Green Revolution also drew criticism for its reliance on irrigation, fertiliser and pesticides, but its role in averting mass famine reshaped the modern world.