Biotech Crops
Experience Remarkable Dozen Years of Double-Digit Growth
Brussels, February 13th
2008
After a dozen years of commercialization, biotech crops are still gaining
ground with another year of double-digit growth and new countries joining the
list of supporters, according to a report released today by the International
Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA). In 2007,
biotech crop area grew 12 percent or 12.3 million hectares to reach 114.3
million hectares, the second highest area increase in the past five years.
2 million more farmers planted biotech crops last year to total 12 million
farmers globally enjoying the advantages from the improved technology.
Notably, 9 out of 10, or 11 million of the benefiting farmers, were
resource-poor farmers, exceeding the 10-million milestone for the first time.
In fact, the number of developing countries (12) planting biotech crops
surpassed the number of industrialized countries (11), and the growth rate in
the developing world was three times that of industrialized nations (21
percent compared to 6 percent.)
