Dr. Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development at Harvard Kennedy School and author of The New Harvest: Agricultural Innovation in Africa (Oxford University Press, 2011), writes a guest blog discussing the implications of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) 2011 report on major developments impacting biotech crop adoption worldwide.

 By Calestous Juma

 This year’s announcement by ISAAA that the adoption of transgenic crops continues to expand at 8% per year since 1996-when biotech crops first became available to U.S. farmers- is a signal of the transformational role that biotechnology is already having on agriculture. ISAAA reports that biotech crops contributed to mitigating climate change, alleviating poverty and improving global food security. Most notably, it states that between 1996 and 2010, biotech crops increased “crop production and value by $78 billion.” In 2010 alone, the technology contributed to “conserving biodiversity by saving 91 million hectares of land; and helped alleviate poverty by helping 15.0 million small farmers who are some of the poorest people in the world.”

 The evidence is stacking up against critics of biotechnology. Earlier claims that transgenic crops were likely to have dramatic negative impacts on the environment will not continue to enjoy the kind of support they did 15 years ago. What is needed now is a more balanced assessment that looks at all the evidence available to date to determine the role of biotechnology in addressing climate change and global food needs.

Reuters: Mexico plans to approve GM corn for commercial planting

Reuters reports Mexico plans to approve permits for planting genetically modified (GM) corn by the end of the year. The article points out that GM crops should help make Mexico more competitive with the U.S., where genetically modified corn is widespread. Read more.

Biotech research in West Africa aims to reduce poverty

According to All Africa, the U.S. Department of State commissioned the Fulbright scholar and expert on biotechnology Dr. Hortense Dodo to visit a number of West African countries to speak to policymakers, farmers and members of the scientific community on the benefits of biotechnology for reducing poverty.

In the article, Cynthia Gregg at the U.S. Embassy in Gambia says she is excited to have Dr. Dodo in Gambia because biotech crops “can play an important role through increasing productivity while decreasing costs of production by a reduced need for inputs and plowing.” Read more.