University of Georgia crop scientist and BIO panelist Wayne Parrott is quoted in Tuesday’s Reason Online “Yielding to Ideology Over Science” discussing modern farming accomplishments and the benefits of ag biotech in food production. When comparing the rate of increase in corn yields between biotech-friendly U.S. and biotech-hostile France and Italy over the past ten years, Parrott notes, “In marked contrast to yield increases in the U.S., yields in France and Italy have leveled off.”

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and other groups argue that modern crop biotechnology should be largely abandoned because it has failed to increase agricultural yields.

Parrott responds:

“To the extent to which groups like UCS have advocated prohibitive and disproportional regulations, they are responsible for the lack of even greater achievements in operational yield and perhaps even in intrinsic yield. In fact UCS is on the record as opposing engineered stress tolerance in crops. Such a stance by UCS is untenable and contradictory—yield losses caused by adverse growing conditions defeats the purpose of having a higher intrinsic yield—that is why it is so important to increase operational yield, and increasing operational yield is done with resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses—i.e., adverse growing conditions.”

Ronald Bailey, Reason magazine’s science correspondent, agrees:

“Increasing crop yields to meet humanity’s growing demand for healthful food while protecting the natural world will require deploying the full scientific armamentarium. This includes advances in crop breeding, improvements in cultivation practices, the safer deployment of fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides—and, yes, genetic engineering. It is odd that while the UCS accepts the scientific consensus on man-made global warming, it refuses to accept the scientific consensus on the safety, usefulness, and environmental benefits of biotech crops.”

Parrott added:

“In the end, after helping prevent scientific advances with genetically modified crops, the UCS is not in a good position to be calling genetically modified crops a failure because their scientific advances have not been greater.”

“If an agricultural practice does not allow farmers to produce enough food to feed a growing global population, it is not sustainable,” say Growers for Biotechnology in an Earth Day announcement. “There is nothing sustainable about food shortages and starvation. Experts estimate that growers will need to double their current production by 2050 to meet global food demand. New skills and technologies are the only way we can make this happen.”

Herbicide tolerant crops, insect-protected crops, cold-tolerant corn and drought-tolerant corn are ways that biotechnology has conserved fuel, reduced emissions, prevented stream runoff, eliminated insecticide use, and increased yield. Greater yield measures greater sustainability.

Earth Day thought from Kansas farmer CJ Blew: “A farmer is not an environmental activist he is an active environmentalist.”

In honor of Earth Day 2009, the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) highlighted ten ways agricultural biotechnology is helping to save the planet by creating renewable energy sources and reducing agriculture’s environmental footprint. 

 Sharon Bomer, the executive vice president of the Food and Agriculture Section at BIO is quoted:

“The cultivation of food and crops affects everyone on the planet; not just by bringing food to their plates, but also ensuring that we’re doing it in the most environmentally friendly way possible to encourage the best use of our limited resource. Through farming practices like no-till agriculture and crops that can thrive even on marginal land, biotechnology is helping to feed and fuel the world in a much more sustainable manner.”

Some of the ways ag biotech is helping:

• Biofuel from cellulose generates eight to 10 times as much net energy as is required for its production. (Biotechnology Industry Organization. “New Biotech Tools for a Cleaner Environment.”)
• Biotech is developing drought-resistant crops, enabling agricultural production to withstand adverse growing conditions. Researchers recently tested cutting-edge biotech plants by subjecting them to drought conditions of 70% less water than normal. They survived with almost no loss in yield. (Council for Biotechnology Information. “The Search for ‘More Crop Per Drop.”)
• Pest-resistant biotech crops have reduced global pesticide applications by 630 million pounds. (Biotechnology Industry Organization.)
• Biotech crops can be grown using no-till farming, which increases soil retention of carbon two or three times that of standard farming practices, causing less emissions of the harmful greenhouse gas. (Biotechnology Industry Organization.)
• By reducing the need for energy intensive tilling, biotech crops have decreased fuel consumption on farms by 551 million gallons. (Biotechnology Industry Organization, PG Economics Ltd.)
• Processing just 30 percent of U.S. corn stover into biofuels would reduce net U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by 90 to 150 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent each year, enough to offset the CO2 emissions of 10 typical coal-fired power plants. (Biotechnology Industry Organization. “Achieving Sustainable Production of Agriculture Biomass for Biorefinery Feedstock.”)

Rosalie Ellasus, a farmer from San Jacinto, Philippines, who answered some questions for us by email from the Philippines:

Please tell us about yourself and your farm.
I am a 49 year old lady farmer, widow with 3 sons, Medical Technology graduate from San Jacinto, Pangasinan, Philippines. A Zero Knowledge in farming, I started tilling 1.3 hectares of agri land in 2001 that I acquired from my savings from being an Overseas Foreign Worker and rose up to 10 hectares to date. In the beginning I was a plain receiver of 25% share, but am now a hands-on farmer. Learning farming from the Department of Agriculture Corn Program called IPM-FFS (Integrated Pest Management - Farmers’ Field School), I became a very active farmer leader in my town, elected as National President of Philmaize Federation, Inc in 2006, and won as town councilor in the 2007 local election.

You wrote in the description of your panel presentation that agricultural biotechnology has “changed my life like magic in just a few years.” What do you mean by that?
My journey toward Biotechnology farming started in 2002 after visiting a demo trial of BT Corn in a nearby town. I was challenged and intrigued with the outcome of the trial, and little did I know it did change my life like “magic”. My willingness and openness to technology gave me the opportunity to gain the greener pasture I’d been looking for in a foreign country for 11 years. In fact, this year I just finished transacting to lease 20 hectares that will add up to my present 10 hectares of agri land to be planted all with stacked corn again. Not to mention my being an Ambassadress of Biotechnology in Asia, which I never dreamed of. My passion for Biotech farming then rewarded me an International recognition, being the 1st recipient of the “Kleckner Trade & Technology Advancement Award” in 2007 at Des Moines, Iowa during the World Food Prize.

How is agricultural biotechnology changing farming in the Philippines?
Philippines being the first country in Asia to have a biotechnology crop for food and feed approved for commercialization greatly showed significant development for farmers by attaining higher yield, thereby becoming profitable, reducing pesticide use and helping the country attain sufficiency in grain. Adoption of biotech corn in particular has increased consistently since it was first commercialized delivering economic, environmental, health and social benefits to all kinds of farmers in the country.

What do you believe is the outlook for greater adoption of agricultural biotechnology in Asia?
Being an Ambassadress of Biotechnology in Asia, I believe that if these 5 countries (Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand) will adopt agricultural biotechnology greatly it will not only boost the economy of each country, but will also become the best quality biotech grains that can feed the growing population on the whole planet.