DEVELOPING WORLD TO BENEFIT FROM BIOTECH
September 12, 2003
Crop Biotech Update
www.isaaa.org/kc
Biotechnology has the potential to play a significant role in rapidly
advancing agricultural productivity in developing countries while
protectingthe environment. In combination with political and economic
reforms, biotechnology can increase crop productivity by increasing yields
and improving the nutritional content of crops in developing countries. It
will also help provide lower-cost food to low-income consumers. This is the
gist of an article entitled OAgricultural Biotechnology and the Developing
World¹ by J.B. Penn, Undersecretary of the US Department of Agriculture.
Penn cited the following specific benefits:
Reduced reliance of biotech varieties on chemical inputs resulting in less
water pollution
Reduced chemical usage resulting in safer water supplies and higher quality
drinking water
Higher yielding biotech crops that help ease the strain on land resources,
reducing the need for expansion onto more fragile areas and thus allowing
for greater conservation of natural habitats
Lower energy usage on biotech crops because there are fewer passes through
fields in applying chemicals
Herbicide-resistant crops encourage the adoption of conservation tillage,
especially no-till, which reduce erosion of topsoil
View the article online at
http://usinfo.state.gov/journals/ite.../ijee/penn.htm