Benefits of Plant Biotechnology November 2002. 2 Plant biotech 101: What is plant biotechnology?...

Benefits of Plant Biotechnology

November 2002

2

Plant biotech 101:

• What is plant biotechnology?

• Products on the market

• Benefits of biotechnology

• Safety and regulation

3 What is plant biotechnology?

Thomas Fairchild Fairchild’s mule

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Fairchild’s mule gave birth to many

of today’s hybrid flowers

What is plant biotechnology?

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“We have recently advanced our knowledge of genetics to a point where we can manipulate life in a way never intended by nature. We must proceed with the utmost caution in the application of this new-found knowledge.”

— Luther Burbank

What is plant biotechnology?

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Burbank was a pioneer in the development of several hybrid plants in the late 1800s and early 1900s– plums

– berries– prunes– peaches– potatoes

What is plant biotechnology?

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Selective breeding led to higher-yielding varieties.

What is plant biotechnology?

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Modern cornTeosinte

What is plant biotechnology?

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Gregor Johann Mendel

What is plant biotechnology?

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Desired gene

Traditional plant breedingDNA is a strand of genes, much like a strand of pearls. Traditional plant breeding combines many genes at once.

Traditional donor Commercial variety New variety

Desired Gene

X =(crosses)

(many genes are transferred)

Plant biotechnologyUsing plant biotechnology, a single gene may be added to the strand.

Desired gene Commercial variety New variety

(transfers)

=

Desired gene

(only desired gene is transferred)

What is plant biotechnology?

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Plant biotechnology definition:

A precise process in which scientific techniques are used to develop useful and beneficial plants.

What is plant biotechnology?

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“No conceptual distinction exists between genetic modification of plants and microorganisms by classical methods or by molecular techniques that modify DNA and transfer genes.”

— National Research Council

What is plant biotechnology?

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Products on the market

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More than 50 biotech food products have been approved for commercial use in the United States

• Canola

• Corn

• Cotton

• Papaya

• Potato

• Soybeans

• Squash

• Sugarbeets

• Sweet corn

• Tomato

Products on the market

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Four crops accounted for nearly all of the global biotech crop area in 2001

Source: International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications

5%

13%

19%

63%

Canola

Cotton

Corn

Soybeans

Products on the market

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Four countries accounted for 99 percent* of the global biotech crop area in 2001

*Australia, Bulgaria, Germany, Indonesia, Mexico, Romania, South Africa, Spain and Uruguay accounted for the remaining 1 percent of biotech crop acres.

Source: International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications

3%

6%

22%

68%

China

Canada

Argentina

United States

Products on the market

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Source: International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications

Global plantings of biotech crops increased nearly 20 percent in 2001

52.6

1.711

27.8

44.239.9

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001

Global Area of GM Crops

Mill

ion

Hec

tars

Products on the market

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“Adoption rates for transgenic crops are unprecedented and are the highest for any new technologies by agricultural industry standards.”

— Clive James, Chair of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications

Products on the market

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Benefits of biotechnology

Better food

Better for the environment

More food

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More food

Current cultivars 4 billion pounds $1.5 billion 46 million pounds

Potential cultivars 10 billion pounds $1 billion 117 million pounds

Total 14 billion pounds $2.5 billion 163 million pounds

Yield increaseNet economic

impactPesticide reduction

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

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More food

Source: National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

• Bt corn – 3.5 billion pound yield increase and $125 million in additional income

• Bt cotton – 185 million pound yield increase and $102 million in additional income

• Biotech soybeans – $1 billion in additional income through production cost savings

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Products in the pipeline

• Pest- and disease-resistant cassava

Agronomic benefits

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

• Disease-resistant bananas

• Disease-resistant sweet potatoes

• Oranges resistant to citrus canker

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Source: C.S. Prakash, Center for Plant Biotechnology Research, Tuskegee University, Alabama

Agricultural yield increases are declining

Developing countries World Developed countries0

1

2

3

Per

cen

tag

e p

er y

ear

1967–19821982–1994

1995–2020

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

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By 2025, there will be another 2 billion mouths to feed

— United Nations Population Fund

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

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Distribution of world population growth to 2010

South America 8%

Africa 35%

Asia 51%

Former Soviet Union 0%

Europe 0%

North America 5%

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

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North America 27%

South America 9%Africa 6%

Asia 32%

Former Soviet Union 4%

Europe 24%

Distribution of world income growth to 2010

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

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More food will be needed

to feed a growing global

middle class

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

Developed world (EU, U.S., Japan) – Population: 1 billion– Income: $5,000+

Developing world (Asia, Latin America)– Population: 4.2 billion – Income: $400 - $5,000

Impoverished areas (Africa) – Population: 800 million– Income: <$400

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Farmers will need to at least double production over the next 25 years to meet increased demand.

— Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

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Without an increase in farm productivity, an additional 4 billion acres of arable land will need to come under the plow by 2050.

— C.S. Prakash, founder and president of the nonprofit AgBioWorld Foundation

Benefits of biotechnology – More food

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Better food

Benefits of biotechnology – Better food

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Products in the pipelineEnhanced nutritional qualities

• Tomatoes enriched with flavonols

• Soybean and canola oils with higher levels of vitamin E

• Vitamin-enriched rice

• Decaffeinated coffee

Benefits of biotechnology – Better food

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Products in the pipelineEnhanced nutritional qualities

“I think in the long term we will have foods that are less hazardous because biotechnology will have eliminated or diminished their allergenicity.”

— Steve Taylor, Ph.D. Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska

Benefits of biotechnology – Better food

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Products in the pipelineFunctional foods

• Bananas to deliver a hepatitis vaccine

Benefits of biotechnology – Better food

• Apples to protect against Respiratory Syncytial virus

• Potatoes to protect against cholera, E. coli and Norwalk virus

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Better for the environment

“The results clearly show that soil, air and water quality are enhanced through the responsible use of current biotechnology-derived soybean, corn and cotton crops.”

— Teresa Gruber, executive director of the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST)

Benefits of biotechnology – Environment

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Conservation tillage improves wildlife habitat, water quality

Nearly three-fourths of no-till soybean acres and 86 percent of no-till cotton acres were planted with biotech varieties.

Source: Conservation Technology Information Center

Benefits of biotechnology – Environment

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Better for the environment

— Iowa farmer Roy Bardole

“We have wildlife on the farm today that my dad has never seen before, and he’s over 90 years old.”

Benefits of biotechnology – Environment

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Government Regulation

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38

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• World Health Organization

• American Dietetic Association

• Institute of Food Technologists

• American Medical Association

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“The College supports the use of biotechnology to develop food crops that contribute to global food security and enhance the safety and nutritional value of the food supply.”

— American College of Nutrition Statement on Crop Biotechnology

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“There is no reason to suppose that the process of food production through biotechnology leads to risks of a different nature than those ... created by conventional breeding.”

— Society of Toxicology Statement on the Safety of Foods Produced Through Biotechnology

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“Biotechnology experts believe that the current regimen of tests has been adequate for ensuring that GM foods marketed to consumers are as safe as conventional foods.”

— General Accounting Office

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“Indeed, the use of more precise technology and the greater regulatory scrutiny probably make them [biotech foods] even safer than conventional plants and foods.”

— European Commission research report

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USDA report says impact of Bt corn on butterflies is “negligible”

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Increasing production on existing land preserves forests, enhancing biodiversity

U.N. report says biodiversity will be threatened on 72 percent of global land area in 30 years.

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Biotech foods are labeled when they are significantly different from their conventional counterparts

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USDA Organic Seal program provides consumers with choices

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Hybrid wheat gave birth to agriculture and some say civilization itself.

— Jacob Bronowski, author The Ascent of Man

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Plant biotechnology represents the next leap forward

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Making progress

• India approves planting of biotech cotton

• U.N. report says GMOs could be “breakthrough technology for developing countries”

• African scientists call biotech a “major opportunity to enhance the production of food crops”

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Making progress• “Biotech crops boost farm income, yields”

– Reuters• “Biotechnology tastes sweeter and

sweeter” – Omaha World Herald• “Biotech crops, an environmental ally”

– Akron Beacon Journal• “Biotech food great for farmers, eaters” –

The Spokesman Review• “Biotech crop report cites benefits for

food production, environment” – Feedstuffs

• “Genetic crops could help reduce pesticides” – UPI

• “Biotech holds great promise for beets” – Grand Forks Herald

CBI

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“We are increasingly encouraged that the advantages of genetic engineering of plants and animals are greater than the risks. ... We cannot agree with the position of some groups that say it is against the will of God to meddle with the genetic make-up of plants and animals.”

— Bishop Elio Sgreccia,vice president of thePontifical Academy for Life

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“If they can give us a better tomato, I’m for it.”

— Julia Child

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The more people know, the more they support biotechnology

32%

51%

50%

67%

Heard some or a lot

Heard little or nothing

Percentage who support biotechnology to...

Develop new varieties of

crops

Genetically modify foods

Jul. ‘02

CBI

55 CBI

Council for Biotechnology Information www.whybiotech.com

Helping improve people’s understanding of the products of agricultural and food biotechnology.