BIOTECH CROPS offer enormous benefits to the environment as well as contribute to the enhancement of both, human and animal health.
They also largely contribute to improving and upgrading the socioeconomic status of famers and crop producers everywhere, and more so in third world countries in Africa and Asia.
This was the take home message during the recent release of the new studies highlighting the continued social, environmental and economic benefits of the global adoption of biotechnology in agriculture.
The study released in Manila on June 26 by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) and PG Economics Ltd highlighted the continued social, environmental and economic benefits of the global adoption of biotechnology in agriculture.
Enormous benefits
In his message ISAAA board chairperson Dr Paul S Teng said: “Biotech crops offer enormous benefits all-round to humans, animals as well as the environment.
He highlighted: “The recent production of next generation biotech crops – including apples and potatoes that are not likely to spoil or become damaged, anthocyanin-enriched super sweet pineapple, increased ear biomass and high amylose content maize, and soybeans with modified oil content, combined with the commercialisation approval for an insect resistant sugarcane – provides more diverse offerings to consumers and food producers.”[ihc-hide-content ihc_mb_type=”show” ihc_mb_who=”2,3″ ihc_mb_template=”1″ ]
The complementary studies – PG Economics’ “GM Crops: Global Socio-Economic and Environmental Impacts 1996-2016” and ISAAA’s “Global Status of Commercialised Biotech/GM Crops: 2017” also the continued widespread adoption of global crop biotechnology – and the significant positive socio-economic and environmental impacts of this adoption by farmers and communities around the globe.
Increased crop hectarage
The ISAAA report shows the global biotech crop area increased in 2017 by three percent or 4.7 million hectares.
It said the increase is due primarily to greater profitability stemming from higher commodity prices, as well as increased market demand, both domestically and internationally, and the presence of available seed producers.
According to the report, as more developing countries, now 19 in total including India, Pakistan, Brazil, Bolivia, Sudan, Mexico, Colombia, Vietnam, Honduras, and Bangladesh have increased their biotech crop area and continue to allow farmers to adopt biotechnology in food production, smallholder farmers see the direct improvements this offers.
“By the adoption of this technology, the socioeconomic lives of farmers are known to have largely improved and they are better-abled to provide ‘the good life’ for themselves and their families.
In fact, developing countries now account for 53 per cent of the global biotech area planted.
Economic gains
From 1996-2016, PG Economics reported biotech crops provided $186.1 billion in economic gains to some 17 million farmers, many of whom are female, smallholder farmers solely responsible for the livelihood of their families and communities.
Graham Brookes, Director of PG Economics and co-author of the socio-economic and environmental impact paper said: “Global food insecurity is a huge problem in developing countries, with around 108 million people in food crisis-affected countries still at risk or experiencing food insecurity.
“We have seen for more than 20 years now how crop biotechnology adoption in developing countries has contributed to higher yields, more secure production, and increased incomes greatly contributing to decreasing poverty, hunger and malnutrition in some regions of the globe most prone to these challenges.”
The PG Economics study also showed great strides have already been made to reduce the footprint of agriculture and in mitigating and adapting to climate change. The latest study highlights how biotech use in agriculture continues to contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
According to the report, coupled with the record 189.8 million hectares of biotech crops grown globally, the continued expansion of biotech adoption offers beneficial nutritional quality traits that may help offset the nutrition-draining impact of climate change on certain crops.
“Another aspect driving the increase may be related to research conducted by public sector institutions on rice, banana, potato, wheat, chickpea, pigeon pea and mustard with nutritional quality traits beneficial to food producers and consumers in developing countries,” the report said.
Impact of climate change
The report also pointed out that studies show that climate change can considerably reduce the protein, zinc and iron content of staple crops, putting 1.4 billion children at risk globally of major iron deficiencies by 2050.
According to the report, for 2017, ISAAA also stated that there were improvements in the commercial availability and planting of biotech fruits and vegetables with direct consumer benefits.
It said that two generations of Innate® potatoes have been approved in the US and Canada, one with reduced bruising and browning and lower acrylamide and the other with these traits plus lower levels of reducing sugars and late blight protection, along with non-browning Arctic® apples in the USA, and Bt eggplant in Bangladesh. These are all more sustainable products for consumers and the environment alike.
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