Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
The final two columns are based on data on global use of GM seed
reported by James (2007). The second-to-last column summarizes approvals
for planting and/or environmental release of a specific GM “event” through
2007. 24 These data are a simple count of the number of approvals granted in
any country—if the same GM event has been approved in two countries, it is
counted twice. The Big 6 firms accounted for 87 percent of these approvals,
with Monsanto claiming nearly half of the total. 25 Outside of the Big 6, the
most notable holder of approvals for GM events was Florigene, an Australian
company with traits for altering flower color.
In the last column, we use data on the area planted to GM cultivars and
event approvals from James (2007), together with other information, to
estimate the total “trait-acres” under GM crops and assign them to a given
source. A trait-acre consists of a single trait planted on an acre, which means
that acreage with stacked genes (e.g., Bt and herbicide tolerance combined in a
single cultivar) is counted more than once, depending on the total number of
biotechnology traits that are “stacked' in a variety. This effect complicates the
estimation, particularly when multiple stacked traits (which may originate
from different sources) are widely deployed. We made these assessments for
the top four GM crops (soybeans, corn, cotton, and canola) for the 13 countries
worldwide in which more than 100,000 hectares of GM crops were planted in
2007.
Some individual trait-crop combinations are easier to assess than others.
For example, Roundup Ready soybeans, which account for over 40 percent of
all trait-acres, are easy to identify from the data in James (2007). On the other
hand, insect-resistance traits are very hard to separate, particularly in corn. 26
To quote an Iowa State University extension publication on integrated pest
management, the earliest Bt corn featured “one gene (Cry1Ab), three genetic
events (176, Bt-11, MON 810) with event 176 under two trademarks
(KnockOut and NatureGard) and events Bt-11 and MON 810 under one trade-
mark (YieldGard).” 27 Furthermore, these Bt events were associated with a
number of different companies: Monsanto; Northrup King/Sandoz/Novartis/
Syngenta; Ciba-Geigy/Novartis/Syngenta; and Mycogen/Dow. 28
Based on the level of actual planting of GM crops in 2007, Monsanto
traits clearly dominated, with approximately 85 percent of total global trait
acres. Four of the other five Big 6 companies had some planted trait acreages,
although it is difficult to estimate exact areas. Bayer was notable in that it held
the most widely used events for resistance to glufosinate, a herbicide alter-
native to glyphosate. Glufosinate-tolerant (“Liberty Link”) canola varieties
were deployed early in Canada and have achieved a minor but notable position
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