Friday, March 29, 2024

Biotech crops area still rising

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New Zealand ranks eighth in the world for approvals of genetic modification even though it doesn’t allow the planting of biotech crops.
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It ranked eighth in the world because of 96 approvals for genetically modified food and one for feed, the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications said in its annual report.

The area of biotech crops the world grew last year was 185.1 million hectares – a 100-fold increase in 21 years.

The area in such crops in 1996 was just 1.7m hectares.

That continued to demonstrate the long-standing benefits of biotech or genetically modified crops for farmers in developing and industrialized countries, as well as consumer benefits of recently approved and commercialised varieties.

The global area had rebounded in 2016 from 179. 7m hectares in 2015 when it was down from 181.5m hectares in 2014.

Last year 26 countries, including 19 developing and seven industrial countries, grew biotech crops. Developing countries grew 54% of biotech crops, compared to 46% for industrial nations.

Eight countries in Asia and the Pacific, including China and India, grew 18.6m hectares of biotech crops in 2016.

In 2016 the leading countries growing biotech crops were the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Canada and India. Combined, those five countries planted 91% of the global biotech crop area.

“Biotech crops have become a vital agricultural resource for farmers around the world because of the immense benefits for improved productivity and profitability as well as conservation efforts,” ISAAA chairman Paul Teng said.

“With the commercial approvals and plantings of new varieties of biotech potatoes and apples consumers will begin to enjoy direct benefits of biotechnology with produce that is not likely to spoil or be damaged, which in turn has the potential to substantially reduce food waste and consumer grocery costs.”

The report, Global Status of Commercialised Biotech/GM Crops: 2016, said adoption of biotech crops had reduced CO2 emissions equal to removing about 12m cars from the road annually in recent years, conserved biodiversity by saving 19.4m hectares of land from agriculture in 2015 and decreased the environmental impact with a 19% reduction in herbicide and insecticide use.

In developing countries planting biotech crops had helped alleviate hunger by increasing the incomes for 18m small farmers and their families, bringing improved financial stability to more than 65m people.

“Biotechnology is one of the tools necessary in helping farmers grow more food on less land,” ISAAA global co-ordinator Randy Hautea said.

“However, the promises of biotech crops can only be unlocked if farmers are able to buy and plant these crops, following a scientific approach to regulatory reviews and approvals.”

As more varieties of biotech crops were approved and commercialised for use by farmers, ISAAA expected to see adoption rates continue to climb and to benefit farmers in developing countries.

For example, among African nations where regulatory processes had traditionally created barriers to biotech crop adoption rates, advances were being realised.

In 2016, South Africa and Sudan increased the planting of biotech maize, soybean and cotton to 2.66m hectares from 2.29m hectares in 2015.

Elsewhere on the continent, a new wave of acceptance was emerging as Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Swaziland and Uganda made advances in regulatory reviews and commercial approvals for a variety of biotech crops.

“Even with a long history of regulatory barriers African farmers continue to adopt biotech crops because of the value they are realising from the stability and productivity of biotech varieties,” Hautea said.

“As more countries move forward with regulatory reviews for crops such as bananas, cowpeas and sorghum we believe biotech crop plantings will continue to grow in Africa and elsewhere.”

Last year Brazil increased the biotech area of maize, soybean, and cotton by 11% – maintaining its ranking as the second largest producer of biotech crops after the US.

In Brazil, biotech soybeans accounted for 32.7m hectares of the 91.4m hectares grown worldwide.

For 2016, ISAAA also reports that there were improvements in the commercialisation and plantings of biotech fruits and vegetables with direct consumer benefits.

They included commercial approvals of the Innate russet burbank Gen 2 potatoes by the US Food and Drug Administration for sale in the US and the Simplot Gen 1 white russet brand potatoes that were approved by Health Canada for fresh market sale in Canada.

Those biotech potato varieties had lower levels of asparagine, which reduced the creation of acrylamide during high-heat cooking.

The first commercially saleable quantities of Arctic apples were harvested in 2016, stored over the winter and were projected to be sold in US grocery stores this year.

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Read the report’s executive summary at www.isaaa.org

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