GMO Food for Thought

Of the 5.05 million acres of soybeans planted in Nebraska last year, 90 percent were of genetically modified varieties. That was down 1 percent from 2005.

In 2000, 34 percent of Nebraska's corn crop was genetically modified, as was 72 percent of the state's soybean crop.

The report, titled "Global Status of Biotech/Genetically Modified Crops in 2005," predicted with "cautious optimism" that GM planting will continue to grow as GMs' benefits become more recognized and accepted.

GM crop benefits include improved resistance to destructive insects and increased tolerance of herbicides. GM crops are also touted to be more cost effective and environmentally friendly because fewer applications of crop chemicals are needed. Also, GM crops produce greater yields than traditional crops.

With the state's ethanol industry expected to increase to nearly 1 billion gallons by the end of this year, corn acres are expected to expand to meet its needs.

The National Corn Growers Association has estimated a 10 percent increase in corn acres planted this spring in the United States.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that corn growers last year harvested the third-largest corn crop at 10.5 billion bushels. The 2006 crop had the second-highest yield on record at 149.1 bushels per acre.

Corn has a heavy water demand. But drought and state-imposed water restrictions that limit the expansion of irrigated acres could pose a challenge.

In 2005, Nebraska farmers planted 5.04 million acres of irrigated corn out of a total of 8.5 million acres, or a little less than 60 percent of total corn acres.

But farmers harvested 953.6 million bushels of corn, of which more than 70 percent were from irrigated acres.

Nebraska is poised to become the nation's second-leading ethanol-producing state in the nation. But of all the corn grown in the nation, 8 percent comes from irrigated land, of which 70 percent is grown in Nebraska.

As corn acres expand in Nebraska to meet the growing demand of ethanol plants, GM varieties of corn could increase as varieties are developed to use less water, produce traits desirable for ethanol production and increase yields.

According to the report, the expansion of acreage designated for GM crops also will be driven by China's expected adoption of genetically modified rice in the near future, demand for more nutritional GM food and feed and the anticipated introduction of novel crops with qualities desirable in the production of medicines and biofuels.

In 2005, 8.5 million farmers grew GM crops on 222 million acres, according to the report.

Clive James, ISAAA chairman and founder, said as more developing countries express interest in growing GM crops, that could expand GM acreage almost five times faster than industrialized nations.

James said GM crops have helped to lift 7.7 million subsistence farmers in 11 developing countries out of poverty by increasing their incomes.

"The broader commercialization of biotech rice, the most important food crop of the world's 1.3 billion poor and the 850 million hungry and malnourished, can further this effort," he said.

ISAAA said GM acreage growth of 11 percent in 2005 was down from 20 percent in 2004 and 15 percent in 2003.

But James said the continued increase in the number of countries growing GM crops -- from six in 1996 to 17 in 2004 and 21 in 2005 -- indicates that the substantial benefits associated with these crops are becoming more obvious.

The United States leads the top GM crop producers, followed by Argentina, Brazil, Canada and China.