www.checkbiotech.org ; www.raupp.info ; www.czu.cz

After reviewing the newest statistics from the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, local growers of designer gene crops are declaring that they
have become the second biggest crop category in Hawaii, January 2007.

Hawaii's genetically engineering seed industry is now valued at $70.4
million, according to the National Agricultural Service Hawaii Field Office,
exceeded only by pineapple at $79.3 million. Sugarcane has slipped to third
place with a value of $58.3 million.

Sarah Styan, president of the Hawaii Crop Improvement Association, said
Hawaii has pivotal importance in growing seed corn for the world.

"Most of the corn planted around the world-including biotech corn-spent at
least some portion of its development time in Hawaii," Styan said. "Hawaii
seed companies use plant breeding practices to produce both conventional and
biotech parent seed lines. These seed lines are used to produce commercial
quantities of conventional and biotech seeds for new and improved crops."

Genetic modification, genetic engineering and designer gene are all terms
which most of the time are used to refer to high-tech modication of the
genes of crops to make them hardier or improve their crops. But before this
could be done in the laboratory it was done for centuries through
cross-breeding. Hawaii has traditionally been a popular place to develop
seed for crops because its climate allows more than one growing and
development cycle per year. The research, in brief, proceeds more rapidly.

In 2006 total biotech crop acreage worldwide reached 252 million acres in 22
countries, according to the annual report issued last week by the
International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications.

The agricultural seed crop industry in Hawaii is dominated by seed corn but
also includes soybean, sunflower and cotton. Depending on the year, the
value of the corn seed crop generally falls between 92 percent and 97
percent of the total Hawaii seed industry.

Corn ranked second in biotech crop acreage in the U.S. in 2006, at 48.4
million acres, a 14 percent increase over 2005-with a little over half
planted in biotech corn.

According to the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation, the Hawaii seed industry
employs more than 2,000 people and pumps $144 million a year into the state
economy including $7 million in taxes.

"In addition to its significant contribution to the local economy," Styan
said, "the seed industry also benefits Hawaii by providing jobs for people
living in rural areas who do not participate in the tourism industry. Many
of these jobs are high paying technical jobs that provide opportunities to
graduates of our local colleges and universities who otherwise would leave
the state in search of well-paying jobs. And it helps keep agricultural
lands in production."

The Hawaii Crop Improvement Association is an industry association
representing member seed producers, which together operate on an estimated
8,000 acres on four islands.

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