Scientists have improved the photosynthesis, most important biological process on the planet. The breakthrough, published in the journal Science used genetic modification to increase the amount of sunlight energy crop plants can channel into food production. <br/>That increased the yield in the experimental crop by 15 per cent.<br/> Researchers say this is a critical step towards increasing crop production to feed a growing global population. <br/><br/>Lead researcher Prof Stephen Long, based at the the University of Illinois and the University of Lancaster, said decades of research into the 140-step process by which plants convert sunlight energy into food had revealed specific inefficiencies in crops.