GM Crops Add to Sustainability
A UK study shows that biotech crops have delivered significant global economic and environmental benefits and are making important contributions to global food production and security. “Since 1996, biotech crop adoption has contributed to reducing the release of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, decreased pesticide spraying and significantly boosted farmers’ incomes,” said Graham Brookes, director of PG Economics, co-author of the report. “The technology has also made important contributions to increasing the yields of many farmers, reducing production risks, improving productivity and raising global production of key crops. The combination of economic and environmental benefit delivery is therefore making a valuable contribution to improving the sustainability of global agriculture, with these benefits and improvements being greatest in developing countries.” Biotech crops have contributed to significantly reducing the release of greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural practices. This results from less fuel use and additional soil carbon storage from reduced tillage with biotech crops. In 2007, this was equivalent to removing 14.2 billion kg of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere or equal to removing nearly 6.3 million cars from the road for one year.
Biotech crops have reduced pesticide spraying (1996-2007) by 359 million kg (equivalent to about 125 percent of the annual volume of pesticide active ingredient applied to arable crops in the European Union) and as a result decreased the environmental impact associated with herbicide and insecticide use on the area planted to biotech crops. Herbicide tolerant biotech crops have facilitated the adoption of no/reduced tillage production systems in many regions, especially South America.
Farm income gains in 2007 were equivalent to adding 4.4 percent to the value of global production of the four main biotech crops of soybean, corn, canola and cotton. Of the total farm income benefit, 46.5 percent ($20.5 billion) has been due to yield gains, with the balance arising from reductions in the cost of production. Two thirds of the yield gain was derived from adoption of insect resistant crops and the balance from herbicide tolerant crops. Farmers in developing countries obtained the largest share of the farm income gains in 2007 (58 percent) and over the twelve year period obtained 50 percent of the total ($44.1 billion) gains.
The cost farmers paid for accessing GM technology in 2007 was equal to 24 percent of the total technology gains. For farmers in developing countries the total cost of accessing the technology in 2007 was equal to about 14 percent of total technology gains, whilst for farmers in developed countries the cost was 34 percent of the total technology gains. (PG Economics, 5/20/09).
