Sustainable Development in a Changing Climate - International Development Committee Contents


Written evidence submitted by the Agricultural Biotechnology Council (ABC)

INTRODUCTION

  1.  Abc agrees fully with the importance of aiding developing nations to tackle the immense challenges posed by climate change. As extreme climate conditions increase, biotechnology can help farmers worldwide to develop sustainable methods of agriculture. Researchers in many countries are already at work developing biotech crops to handle the stress of extreme climates and drought as well as continue to produce high yields. Plant biotechnology has helped reduce climate change by lowering greenhouse gas emissions through fuel savings associated with no-till farming systems.

2.  The application of biotechnology to agriculture is fully consistent with international development and humanitarian goals of the Committee. Indeed, biotechnology is making a difference today, with pest-resistant GM crops in China, South Africa and India providing stable food supplies and farmers reaping economic profit from increases yields and quality. Of the twelve million farmers who grow GM crops, eleven million are resource poor farmers from developing countries. Research Institutes and biotechnology companies provide the technology to develop individual traits, but there are real and significant economic benefits for famers, who are more productive, and for consumers who experience lower prices. On average, two thirds of the global benefits are shared "downstream", ie among domestic and foreign farmers and consumers[19]. There are no simple, universal solutions for providing sufficient food in developing countries or for reducing carbon emissions, but a starting point can be protecting current food supplies whilst investing in methodologies to increase sustainable agricultural output. Biotechnology, including GM, is an essential part of the solution.

3.  Abc responds to the specific themes of your inquiry as follows:

THE EFFECTIVENESS AND COHERENCE OF THE UK GOVERNMENT'S APPROACH TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

  4.  The effectiveness of the Government's approach to sustainable development can be enhanced through the adoption and creation of incentives for of biotechnology research worldwide. Certain traits are being developed which can greatly increase farmers' production and income.

5.  Insect-resistance is a good example. Where insect resistant maize is cultivated, farmers benefit financially both from the increased yields of insect-resistant maize (since the same price is charged for GM and non-GM maize grain) and/or from the savings—often very considerable indeed—resulting from the reduced usage of pesticides. There is also a major health benefit in the poorer countries in which many farmers spray from back-packs; the effects on them of the toxic sprays results worldwide in tens of thousands of illnesses and hundreds of deaths. Avoiding insect infection can also enhance the quality and safety of maize for human consumption, by reducing the propensity of the crop to fungal infection with the consequent accumulation of mycotoxins in the crop.

  6.  Moreover, insect-resistant cotton prevents yield losses in cotton (estimated to be worth $5 billion annually), mainly through the damaging impact of the cotton boll weevil. The development of varieties intrinsically resistant to this weevil has transformed the productivity of the crop and the quality of the resultant cotton. Farmers in China, India, South America and South Africa have all benefited.

  7.  It is particularly important to note how agriculture can be "climate-proofed". Fuel-efficient agriculture will be crucial to the future of agriculture: the introduction of GM canola in Canada has already resulted in annual savings of over 30 million litres of fuel. Cumulatively, the numbers are impressive: since 1996, the cultivation of GM soybeans in Argentina has cut fuel use by a third (more than one billion litres' worth) with a concomitant saving of three million tonnes of CO2.

  8.  Many companies are developing the drought tolerance trait, with Bayer, applying it to oilseed rape, and Syngenta, Monsanto and Pioneer (DuPont), using it in maize. Field tests show that crops are able to continue to yield under severe water stress; this is as relevant to farmers in East Anglia as it is in East Africa. Rice and cassava are also being investigated. Furthermore, both maize and oilseed rape with various genetic modifications to improve their utilisation of nitrogen from applied fertilizer or existing soil reserves are already in early field trials research.

PRO-POOR EXPLOITATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES, INCLUDING MINERALS AND FORESTS, AND THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR EXPLOITATION

  9.  Genetically modified crops are already helping over 12 million farmers around the world by delivering more consistent yields of higher quality crops. The vast majority of these farmers are resource-poor growers with small plots of land whose lives can be significantly improved through GM technology.

10.  Terri Raney, Senior Economist of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations suggests that the "|economic evidence available to date does not support the widely held perception that transgenic crops benefit only large farms; on the contrary, the technology may be pro-poor. Nor does the available evidence support the fear that multinational biotechnology firms are capturing all of the economic value created by transgenic crops. On the contrary, the benefits are shared by consumers, technology suppliers and adopting farmers, although non-adopting farmers are penalized as their competitors achieve efficiency gains they are denied".

  11.  In order to ensure that as many farmers as possible worldwide benefit from the potential offered by GM and other aspects of biotechnology, several obstacles need to be overcome:

    12. Stringent EU approval systems are likely to deter developing nations' farmers from adopting GM if they fear not being able to export to EU markets. Furthermore, the capacity of many farmers in developing nations is limited and they may be unable to meet the EU's 0.9% labelling law, which may lead many to believe that cultivating GM could impact on their ability to access the EU markets of conventional commodities.

    13. Anti-science rhetoric regarding biotechnology and GM is too often unchallenged. If we continue to allow GM to be demonised many of the least well off will miss out on the opportunities it could offer.

    14. Insufficient business models and an unpreparedness to invest in the necessary infrastructure for biotechnological projects often hamper progress. It is therefore important to try to establish public-private partnerships that can provide the framework and funding for agricultural development.

  15.  Abc believes that there are several key actions the UK Government should take in order proactively improve adoption of agricultural technologies worldwide:

    16. Progress research into the potential international social and economic benefits of GM in conjunction and collaboration with the biotechnology industry.

    17. Continue to pressure the EU Commission and EU Member States to ensure a working EU regulatory approval process for GMOs, including more timely and predictable approvals in line with the rest of the world.

    18. Recognise the link between biotechnology's potential and the Government's positions on international development.

    19. Consistently underline the importance of scientific debate and to stress that the anti-GM lobby need to be placed under the same scientific scrutiny as the biotechnology companies.






19   GM Crops in Europe: How Much Value and for Whom? U Leuven Back


 
previous page contents next page

House of Commons home page Parliament home page House of Lords home page search page enquiries index

© Parliamentary copyright 2009
Prepared 3 June 2009