The Global Spread ; Developing Countries Are Taking the Plunge in Growing Gm Crops.

Summary

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The global march of biotech in farming is slow but steady. The number of countries electing to grow biotech crops has increased steadily from six in 1996, the first year of commercialisation, to 18 in 2003 and 25 in 2008. And this is a historic milestone for the advocates of biotech crops. In 2008, the global hectarage of biotech crops continued to grow strongly reaching 125 million hectares, up from 114.3 million hectares in 2007.

The USA has the largest area- 62.5 million ha-growing soyabean, maize, cotton, canola, squash, papaya, alfalfa, and sugarbeet, followed by Argentina-21.0 million ha-with soyabean, maize and cotton. Brazil with the same crops as Argentina is in the third slot- 15.8 million ha. India has become the fourth largest adopter of biotech crops in 2008 with cotton alone occupying 7.6 million ha. Canada is in the fifth slot, growing canola, maize, soyabean, sugarbeet in a marginally less area. China is in the sixth slot, growing cotton, tomato, poplar, petunia, papaya, sweet pepper in half the area covered in India by biotech crops. In 2008, developing countries out-numbered industrial countries by 15 to 10, and this trend is expected to continue with 40 countries, or more, expected to adopt biotech crops by 2015, the final year of the second decade of commercialisation.

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The Global Spread ; Developing Countries Are Taking the Plunge in Growing Gm Crops.

With health and safety concerns, each country has adopted its own stringent...

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