Biotech crops continue rapid global growth

Biotechnology continues to be a growing choice among farmers worldwide as global acreage of crops enhanced through biotech increased by 12 percent, or 6.1 million hectares in 2002, according to a new report released today from the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA).

For the sixth consecutive year, farmers worldwide adopted biotech crops at a double-digit pace, with 2002 global biotech acreage reaching 58.7 million hectares. More than one-fifth of the global crop area of soybeans, corn, cotton and canola acres are now biotech. Nearly 6 million farmers in 16 countries chose to plant biotech crops in 2002, up from 5 million farmers in 13 countries in 2001. More than three-quarters of these farmers were resource-poor farmers in developing countries.

"This high adoption rate is a strong vote of confidence in biotech crops, reflecting farmers" need for and satisfaction with the technology," says Clive James, chairman and founder of ISAAA. "In many cases, growers are finding biotechnology offers the only viable solution to protect crops from economically devastating pests."

While biotech cotton maintained its global acreage of 6.8 million hectares, biotech corn acreage grew 27 percent to 12.4 million hectares, biotech canola acreage increased 11 percent to 3 million hectares, and biotech soybean production grew 10 percent to 36.5 million hectares, exceeding more than 50 percent of the global soybean crop area for the first time.

China continued to be one of the leading growers of biotech crops with Bt cotton production increasing 28 percent from 2001 to 2.1 million hectares, making more than half of China’s cotton crop biotech for the first time. The United States, Argentina and Canada are the other principal producers of biotech crops, but other countries in Asia are starting to follow suit.

India grew biotech cotton for the first time in 2002 with 54,000 farmers planting the crop on 45,000 hectares. About 2,700 farmers in Indonesia continue to grow biotech cotton, as well. And, just last month, the Philippines approved a variety of biotech corn, making it one of the first biotech feed crops approved for planting in Asia. For the first time, more than half the world’s population lives in countries where biotech crops are approved and grown.

"Biotechnology continues to be one of the most rapidly adopted technologies in agricultureal history due to the social and economic benefits the crops offer farmers and society, particularly the 5 million resource-poor farmers in developing countries," James says. "Biotech crops can significantly alter the lives of these farmers, limiting the time they must spend in the field and helping alleviate poverty."

The report suggests Bt cotton farmers are seeing these benefits. In China, Bt cotton yielded an additional $14,000 metric tons, allowing farmers growing the crop to increase their income an additional $500 per hectare or $750 million nationally.

"It took little to convince us to plant Bt cotton after seeing field tests," say farmers in Kaloling village in Pajukuton, Bantay, South Sulawesi. "Before biotech plants, we shared the crop with the pests: 50 for them 50 for us."

The ISAAA study also reports biotech crops are contributing to a reduction in pesticide usage. According to the study, Bt cotton alone is estimated to potentially eliminate the need for 33,000 metric tons of insecticide globally, or 40 percent of the current global use.

The report projects continued near-term growth in the global acreage of biotech crops and in the number of farmers who will use the technology. New biotech cotton and corn products are expected to be commercialized within the next few years as well, further increasing biotechnology’s presence around the world. By 2005, the report predicts the global market value of biotech crops will reach $5 billion , up from approximately $4.25 billion in 2002 and $3.8 billion just a year before.

The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) is a not-for-profit organization with an international network of centers designed to contribute to the alleviation of hunger and poverty by sharing crop biotechnology applications. Clive James, chairman and founder of ISAAA, has lived and worked for the past 25 years in the developing countries of Asia, Latin America and Africa, devoting his efforts to agricultural research and development issues. Lately, his focus is crop biotechnology and global food security.

ISAAA publishes several reports on various aspects of crop biotechnology every year including an annual Global Review of Commercialized Transgenic Crops. The final Global Review for 2001 (ISAAA Brief 26) was published in December 2002. The report published today is a Preview of 2002 global GM crops areas and will be supplemented by the customary comprehensive final report for 2002 towards the end of 2003.

Statistics published in ISAAA reports are based on a consolidated data base from a broad range of sources including Government agencies and other organizations in the public and private sector. The figures published cover only planting of GM crops in countries where the products have been officially approved.

"Preview Global Status of Commercialized Transgenic Crops: 2002", by Clive James, ISAAA Briefs No. 27, can be obtained from ISAAA’s Southeast Asia Center: e-mail publications@isaaa .org. Cost of the publication, ISAAA Briefs No. 27, is $US 35.00 including postage. The publication is available free of charge to nationals of developing countries.

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