ISAAA Briefs brief 53 Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops in 2017: Biotech Crop Adoption Surges as Economic Benefits Accumulate in 22 Years Up to 17 million farmers in 24 countries planted 189.8 million hectares (469 million acres) in 2017, an increase of 3% or 4.7 million hectares (11.6 million acres) from 2016. No. 53 – 2017 Over the last 21 years, ISAAA has devoted considerable effort usage of these words in different regions of the world, with to consolidate all the available data on officially approved biotech crops being used exclusively in this text because biotech crop adoption globally; it is important to note that of its growing usage worldwide. Similarly, the words corn, the database does not include plantings of biotech crops that used in North America, and maize, used more commonly are not officially approved. The database draws on a large elsewhere in the world, are synonymous, with maize being number of sources of approved biotech crops from both the used consistently in this Brief, except for common names like public and private sectors in many countries throughout the corn rootworm where global usage dictates the use of the world. The range of crops is those defined as food, feed and word corn. All $ dollar values in this Brief are US dollars unless fiber crops in the FAO database, which totaled ~10 billion otherwise noted. Some of the listed references may not be metric tons of production in 2010 (http://www.geohive.com. cited in the text – for convenience they have been included Charts/ag_crops.aspx). Data sources vary by country and because they are considered useful reading material and were include, where available, government statistics, independent used as preparatory documents for this Brief. Global totals of surveys, and estimates from commodity groups, seed millions of hectares planted with biotech crops have in some associations and other groups, plus a range of proprietary cases been rounded off to the nearest million and similarly, databases. In the interest of uniformity, continuity, and subtotals to the nearest 100,000 hectares, using both < and comparability, wherever possible, ISAAA utilizes the same > characters; hence in some cases this leads to insignificant published data source annually; for example, for Brazil, the approximations, and there may be minor variances in August biotech reports of Celeres are used; similarly, for some figures, totals, and percentage estimates that do not the US, the USDA/NASS crop acreage reports published always add up exactly to 100% due to rounding off. It is also on 30 June annually are used. Published ISAAA estimates important to note that countries in the Southern Hemisphere are, wherever possible, based on more than one source of plant their crops in the last quarter of the calendar year. The information and thus are usually not attributable to one biotech crop areas reported in this publication are planted, specific source. Multiple sources of information for the not necessarily harvested hectarage, in the year stated. Thus, same data point greatly facilitate assessment, verification, for example, the 2017 information for Argentina, Brazil, and validation of specific estimates. The “proprietary” ISAAA Australia, South Africa, and Uruguay is hectares usually database on biotech crops is unique from two points of view; planted in the last quarter of 2017 and harvested in the first, it provides a global perspective; second, it has used the first quarter of 2018, or later, with some countries like the same basic methodology, improved continuously for the last Philippines planting crops in more than one season per year. 20 years and hence provides continuity from the genesis Thus, for countries of the Southern hemisphere, such as Brazil of the commercialization of biotech crops in 1996, to the and Argentina the estimates are projections, and thus are present. The database has gained acceptance internationally always subject to change due to weather, which may increase as a reliable benchmark of the global status of biotech food, or decrease actual planted area before the end of the planting feed and fiber crops and is widely cited in the scientific season when this Brief went to press. For Brazil, the winter literature and the international press. Whereas individual maize crop (safrinha) planted at the end of December 2017 data points make-up the data base, the most valuable and more intensively through January and February 2018, is information is the trends of adoption over time, for example classified as a 2017 crop in this Brief, consistent with a policy the increasing dominance of developing countries which is which uses the first date of planting to determine the crop clearly evident. year. All biotech crop hectare estimates in this Brief, and all ISAAA publications, are only counted once, irrespective of how Note that the words rapeseed, canola, and Argentine canola many traits are incorporated in the crops. Country figures are used synonymously, as well as transgenic, genetically were sourced from The Economist, supplemented by data modified crops, GM crops, and biotech crops, reflecting the from World Bank, FAO and UNCTAD, when necessary. ISAAA Briefs brief 53 Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops in 2017: Biotech Crop Adoption Surges as Economic Benefits Accumulate in 22 Years No. 53 – 2017 ISAAA prepares this Brief and supports its free distribution to developing countries. The objective is to provide information and knowledge to the scientific community and society on biotech/GM crops to facilitate a more informed and transparent discussion regarding their potential role in contributing to global food, feed, fiber and fuel security, and a more sustainable agriculture. ISAAA takes full responsibility for the views expressed in this publication and for any errors of omission or misinterpretation. Published by: The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA). Copyright: ISAAA 2017. All rights reserved. Whereas ISAAA encourages the global sharing of information in Brief 53, no part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronically, mechanically, by photocopying, recording or otherwise without the permission of the copyright owners. Reproduction of this publication, or parts thereof, for educational and non-commercial purposes is encouraged with due acknowledgment, subsequent to permission being granted by ISAAA. Citation: ISAAA. 2017. Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops in 2017: Biotech Crop Adoption Surges as Economic Benefits Accumulate in 22 Years. ISAAA Brief No. 53. ISAAA: Ithaca, NY. This 2017 ISAAA Brief is the second extension of the 20 Volumes of Annual Briefs (1996 to 2015) on global status of biotech/GM crops authored by Clive James, Founder & Emeritus Chairman of ISAAA. iSBN: 978-1-892456-67-2 Publication Orders: Full Brief 53 and the Executive Summary are downloadable free of charge from the ISAAA website (http://www.isaaa.org). Please contact the ISAAA SEAsiaCenter to acquire a hard copy of the full version of Brief 53. ISAAA SEAsiaCenter c/o IRRI DAPO Box 7777 Metro Manila, Philippines info on iSAAA: For information about ISAAA, please contact the Center nearest you: ISAAA AmeriCenter ISAAA AfriCenter ISAAA SEAsiaCenter c/o IP CALs PO Box 70, ILRI Campus c/o IRRI B75 Mann Library Old Naivasha Road DAPO Box 7777 Cornell University Uthiru, Nairobi 00605 Metro Manila Ithaca NY 14853, U.S.A. Kenya Philippines Electronically: or email to [email protected] For Executive Summaries of all ISAAA Briefs, please visit http://www.isaaa.org Table of Contents List of Tables and Figures ii Biosafety Policy Developments 90 Introduction 1 Technology Demand 90 Global Area of Biotech Crops in 2017 3 Partnerships Emerging in Africa 91 Distribution of Biotech Crops in 3 European Union 92 Industrial and Developing Countries Spain 94 Distribution of Biotech Crops, by 5 Portugal 95 Country Challenges of Biotech Crops in 96 Economic Benefits of Biotech Crops 8 the EU Country Chapters Benefits from Biotech Maize in 100 Top Ten Biotech Crop Countries 9 the EU United States of America 9 Summary and Future Prospects 100 Brazil 16 in the EU Argentina 20 Distribution of Biotech Crops: by Crop 100 Canada 24 Biotech soybean area is 50% of the 100 India 29 global biotech area Paraguay 34 Biotech maize area slightly 102 Pakistan 37 decreased in 2017 China 42 Biotech cotton adoption increased 102 South Africa 46 by 8% Bolivia 50 Biotech canola area increased by 103 Latin America 52 19% Uruguay 52 Biotech alfalfa HarvXtra™ area 103 Mexico 55 increased by 295% Colombia 57 Other biotech crops 103 Honduras 60 Distribution of Biotech Crops, by Trait 104 Chile 61 Trends in Biotech Crop Approvals 1992- 106 Costa Rica 62 2017 Future Prospects for Latin 63 Biotech Crop Importing Countries 108 America Biotechnology Addresses Global Food 108 Asia and the Pacific 64 Insecurity: Now and Into the Future Australia 64 Global Value of Biotech Crop Seeds 122 Philippines 68 Soared to US$17.2 Billion, GMO Myanmar 71 Crops and Seeds Market Revenue to Vietnam 75 Increase by 10.5% in 2025 Bangladesh 77 Opportunity Costs without Global 124 Future Prospects for Asia and 82 Biotech Crops the Pacific Delayed Benefits of Public Sector 126 The African Continent 83 Biotech Crops Sudan 84 Closing Comments and Conclusion 132 Progress with Biotech Crops 86 Acknowledgments 136 Research in Other African References 137 Countries Appendix 143 i List of Tables and Figures TABlES Table 1. Global Area of Biotech Crops, 22 Years, 1996 to 2017 Table 2. Global Area of Biotech Crops, 2015 and 2017: Industrialized and Developing Countries (Million Hectares) Table 3. Global Area of Biotech Crops in 2016 and 2017: by Country (Million Hectares**) Table 4. Total and Trait Hectares of Biotech Maize in the USA, 2016-2017 Table 5. Total and Trait Hectares of Biotech Cotton in the USA, 2016-2017 Table 6.