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?
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