Book Review: Genetically engineered crops in developing countries

Genetically modified crops in developing countries.

Genetically modified crops: hope for developing countries?

For many people in the First World, genetically modified crops have become the latest incarnation of evil biotechnology, which sacrifices humans and the environment for the sake of revenues and shareholder value. On one side of the heated discourse are people who firmly believe that GM crops pose a threat to human health and biodiversity. On the other side are mainly scientists who are convince...

Genetically modified crops and developing countries.

The world’s population is expected to almost double by the year 2050, making food security the most important social issue for the next 30 years. Food production will have to be doubled or preferably tripled to meet the needs of the expected 6 billion people, 90% of whom will reside in the developing world. The enormity of this challenge will be further exacerbated by the dwindling availability...

Yield effects of genetically modified crops in developing countries.

Onfarm field trials carried out with Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton in different states of India show that the technology substantially reduces pest damage and increases yields. The yield gains are much higher than what has been reported for other countries where genetically modified crops were used mostly to replace and enhance chemical pest control. In many developing countries, small-sca...

The use of genetically modified crops in developing countries

There are many factors that contribute to poverty and hunger in developing countries, including war, political instability, lack of infrastructure and poor economic conditions. We do not claim that the use of GM crops alone will eliminate the need for political, social or economic change, or that they will simply ‘feed the world’. We recognise that we are discussing only part of a much larger p...