INTERVIEW - Argentine GM crop area to grow by 1.5 mln hectares
Date: 19-Dec-01
Country: ARGENTINA
Author: Damian Wroclavsky
"I would say (Argentina) will increase at least 1.5 million hectares more" in 2001/02, said Clive James, president of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA).
ISAAA, which is financed by government funds, foundations and private companies, collects statistics on the global use of genetically modified products.
Argentina, Latin America's No. 3 economy, is a major producer of grains and oilseeds and is second only to the United States in the use of GM products. The area planted in Argentina in 2000 represented a quarter of total GM plantings worldwide.
Of the record 11.3 million hectares forecast to be planted with soy this year, nearly all will be sown with genetically modified seeds, according to ISAAA data. About 88 percent of soy planted last year was genetically modified.
Genetically modified corn plantings look set to grow to 800,000 hectares out of a total of 3.34 million hectares, about 14 percent more than a year ago, according to the group.
Cotton area planted with transgenic seeds will probably hold steady at 40,000 hectares.
When asked what Argentina had gained from its extensive use of GM seeds, James said, "We believe that in 1999 on a global basis, farmers in Canada, the U.S., Argentina and China got a return (savings) of approximately $700 million. If you take the part for Argentina after that, that would come to just over $214 million."
Worldwide, 3.5 million farmers planted 44.2 million hectares with transgenic crops in 2000 and more than 125 million hectares in the past five years, James said.
GM POTENTIAL
GM products slash costs for farmers by reducing the amount of preparation needed before planting.
Use of a transgenic soy seed that is resistant to a glyphosate-based weedkiller saved farmers $35 to $55 per hectare in agrochemical expenses and stabilized yields, said James.
Argentina's success with controversial GM crops - even as neighboring agricultural powerhouse Brazil rejected the use of GM seeds - can serve as an example to other poor countries, said James.
"If we look at what happened in Argentina, I believe it is a good example for others countries in Latin America but also in Asia and in Africa. It shows how countries in the south, from the developing world can use this technology with great benefits," he said.
Despite Brazil's current ban on transgenic products, James said the country would likely adopt the technology soon in order to better compete.
"The thought in Europe of course is that Brazil may be a market (a source) for non-GM soybeans in the future. But I think in the end, price will dictate. If people have to pay a higher price for non-GM food ... I think at a very early stage people will refuse to pay," he said.
"There is a risk in using any product and, yes, you must ask questions about what are the potential risks of using this technology. But the more important question for Brazil is what is the risk in not using the technology," James said.
Although farmers hail their cost-cutting benefits, GM products have also stirred controversy, with some environmental and consumer groups arguing they are a threat to human health and the environment.
The European Union has had a moratorium on the approval of new GM products since 1998.
