NEWS: Plant Biotechnology: Seeking better biotech 'yields'
Financial Express
Sudhir Chowdhary
March 12, 2007
Excerpt…
Genetic modification is going through the same fear process which many technologies have seen in the past. "Any new technology would reach perfection over time and the same holds true for genetically modified (GM) or transgenic crops," says B Sesikeran, director, National Institute of Nutrition.
Despite remaining a sensitive issue here as well around the world, India is emerging as a test-bed for biotech crops. Several government-funded R&D projects are being carried out in research institutions to achieve this. Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi, Central Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, Hyderabad, among others, are engaged in advanced research to develop transgenic rice.
Reduction of post-harvest losses, particularly in fruits and vegetables, through delayed ripening genes, is also a major thrust. Besides IARI, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Hyderabad, Mahyco, Sungro Seeds and Monsanto are conducting multi-location field trials of transgenic crops like cabbage, cauliflower, corn, brinjal, groundnut, mustard, rice and tomato. Others like Indo-American Hybrid Seeds, Syngenta and Metahelix are working on this front to create their own indigenous technology.
The march to explore new transgenic crops comes from the newfound confidence gained from growing acceptance of Bt cotton, the only transgenic crop approved for commercial cultivation. The country tallied the most substantial percentage increase at 192% or 2.5 million hectares to total 3.8 million hectares, jumping two spots in the world ranking to become the fifth largest producer of biotech crops in the world, surpassing China for the first time.
The United States continues to drive growth in North America and globally, accounting for the greatest absolute acreage increase in 2006 with the addition of 4.8 million hectares. Brazil leads growth in South America with an increase of 22% to total 11.5 million hectares of soybeans and biotech cotton. Growth also continues in the countries of the European Union (EU) where Slovakia became the sixth EU country out of 25 to plant biotech crops.
All in all, farmers around the world continue rapid adoption of biotech crops. Biotech crop area is now 102 million hectares. The number of farmers planting biotech crops too has gone up to 10.3 million. Agriculturalists expect these adoption levels to continue accelerating in the times to come. By 2015, more than 20 million farmers are expected to plant 200 million hectares of biotech crops in about 40 countries.
Scientists aver that the importance and potential of transgenic crops is hard to ignore. Importantly, India - a country with first-hand experience of the life-saving benefits of the Green Revolution in wheat and rice - exported rice and imported wheat last year. Yields in both wheat and rice are now plateauing and the conventional technology currently used in wheat and rice and other crops will need to be supplemented to feed a growing population that will increase by 50% to 1.5 billion by 2050. Hence, the aggressive focus in research on new biotech crops.
KC Bansal, principal scientist, National Research Centre on Plant Biotechology (NRCPB) says, "Higher adoption rates reflect farmer satisfaction with the products that offer substantial benefits ranging from better crop management, lower cost of production, higher productivity and net returns per hectare."
The adoption of Bt cotton by India and China can greatly influence the adoption and acceptance of biotech crops in countries throughout the world, particularly in developing countries. It is noteworthy that both countries elected to pursue a similar strategy by first exploring the potential benefits of crop technology with a fibre crop, Bt cotton, which has already generated significant and consistent benefits in China, with the same pattern emerging in India, the largest grower of cotton in the world….
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