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Biotech Crops Are Responsible for $27 Billion in Additional Farm Income
Because of the economic and environmental benefits that biotech crops deliver, farmers have planted more acres with biotech products every year since their introduction. According to Clive James, chair and founder of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications, 10.3 million farmers planted biotech crops in 22 countries in 2006, up from 8.5 million farmers in 21 countries in 2005.29 The land planted to biotech crops in 2006 increased by 13 percent from 2005. This is the 11th consecutive year that biotech crop acreage has grown by more than 10 percent. Since 1996, the global area of biotech has increased about 60-fold, from 4.2 million acres (1.7 million hectares) planted in 1996 to 250 million acres (102 million hectares) planted in 2006. The cumulative area planted to biotech crops during that period was 1.43 billion acres (577 million hectares).29
Tom and Charm Arnott grow Bollgard II and Roundup Ready cotton
on their family farm in Queensland, Australia.
“This unprecedented high adoption rate is testimony to the trust and confidence of millions of small and large farmers in crop biotechnology in both industrial and developing countries,” said James.29
A study by U.K. economists Graham Brookes and Peter Barfoot quantified the cumulative economic and environmental effects of biotech crops grown from 1996 through 2005.8 They concluded that farmers who planted biotech crops realized significant economic gains over farmers who planted nonbiotech crops. Moreover, in every country where biotech crops are grown, farmers benefited from higher economic returns. Farm income increased by $5 billion from biotech crops in 2005. The cumulative increase in farm income from biotech crops since 1996 was $27 billion.8
Harald Nitschke grows YieldGard Corn Borer corn on his farm in Germany.
He is one of several thousand European farmers who have chosen this technology.
Increased planting of biotech crops in developing countries is providing increased yields and income to resource-poor farmers. Ninety percent of the farmers who benefited from biotech crops were resource-poor farmers in developing countries, whose increased income contributed to the alleviation of poverty there.29 Farmers in developing countries earned most (55 percent) of the additional $27 billion in cumulative farm income, largely from insect-protected cotton and herbicide-tolerant soybeans.8
In addition to the 22 countries that planted biotech crops in 2006, 29 countries have approved the importation of biotech crops, bringing the total number of importing countries to 51. Six European Union (EU) countries planted biotech crops in 2006, with Slovakia being the most recent country to adopt them.29 The specific economic benefits of biotech crops were studied in four countries: India, the United States, Brazil, and France.
