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Farmers around the world have been growing a revolution during the past
decade. Genetically enhanced crops are producing better harvests and
improving the lives of those who grow and consume the products. Eighteen of
these farmers spoke at BIO 2007 about their success with biotechnology and
the work that remains to give those in need greater access to these crops,
April 2007.

In the developing world

South Africa, which has led biotechnology development on the African
continent, first planted insect-resistant crops in 1997. Up to 20 percent of
the world's corn farmers are in Africa, where corn-boring insects destroy
much of the yield from conventional crops. Recent research shows genetically
enhanced corn, designed to be insect-resistant, increased yields more than
40 percent and reduced corn-borer damage to 2 percent from 18 percent. The
stability that predictable, high-yield harvests provide is especially
important for a country such as South Africa, with its high unemployment
rate and other daunting economic problems.

Dr. Khosi Rebe, assistant director of the Eastern Cape Department of
Agriculture, worked with small-scale South African farmers to help improve
corn yields for more than eight years. He has seen firsthand how
biotechnology holds the key to improving farmers' productivity.

"Maize [corn] yields realized by resource-poor farmers are generally low
because the corn is attacked by stalk-borer [pests]," Rebe said. "The
biotech crop was able to resist attack from the stalk borer and sustained
less damage on leaves, stems and cobs. I received more tons per hectare from
the biotech crop plots and reduced the costs of production."

Beyond food crops

Biotech crops extend beyond food products. India, for example, is the
largest cotton-growing country in the world with 8.7 million hectares, or 25
percent of the global cotton area. Yet, as of 2002, India produced just 12
percent of the world's cotton. Biotechnology promises to help Indian farmers
reach their potential.

Biotechnology "has made me more confident and optimistic about farming,"
said Ashok Vishwanathji Nilawar, whose family has grown cotton in India for
75 years. In just four years, biotechnology helped Nilawar and his family
nearly double their cotton yields and substantially reduce costs.

"Biotech crops will enable me to drive maximum yield benefits from optimum
input usage while maintaining sustained ecological balance," Nilawar said.
"In light of potential agricultural acreage, biotechnology will arm Indian
farmers with a competitive edge in the global market to serve international
markets as well as provide enough food, health and hope for a better
tomorrow."

In Mexico, farmers plant biotech cotton on approximately 120,000 hectares,
and the practice is rapidly expanding. José Rodriguez Zamonsett has been
planting corn, sorghum, cotton and wheat for 30 years. Three years ago,
Zamonsett planted his first crop of biotech cotton as a way to increase
yields.

"In conventional cotton varieties, production costs are high, and there are
problems controlling insects," Zamonsett said. "The insects negatively
affect the quality of the cotton, hurting profits."

Mexico is one of just three countries where farmers grow cotton varieties
with stacked traits that provide insect resistance and herbicide tolerance
in one variety. Zamonsett said genetically enhanced crops play an important
role in conserving the environment, producing more food and making
agriculture more profitable.

"I expect biotech crops will keep making agriculture more efficient," he
said. "The industry will get more competitive, and yields will continue to
improve."

Across the globe

Although biotech crops have obvious advantages for the developing world,
their importance does not stop there. For example, largely as a result of
demonstrated success, interest in biotech crops has been steadily increasing
in Europe. By 2005, five European Union (EU) countries, including
agricultural powers France, Portugal and Spain, had planted biotech crops. A
recent study by the National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy
suggested EU farmers could add 1.6 billion euros in income by adopting the
nine biotech crops approved for production. Although big income numbers are
impressive, local-level impact can be even more telling.

"Biotech crops bring the profit directly to the farmer level," said Raduta
Puica, a family farmer in Romania. "Overall, my profitability has increased
1.5 to three times. This provides more money for my family. Actually, we
were able to refinish our home."

Romania grows the third-largest acreage of soybeans in Europe and began
cultivating herbicide-tolerant soybeans in 1999. Weeds are one of the most
serious threats to productive crops in the area. A 2003 report by PG
Economics showed that improved weed control from herbicide-tolerant soybeans
increased average yields by 30 percent. Puica plans to lobby for continued
access to the crops that have brought prosperity to his family.

North American farmers are also succeeding with biotech crops. In 2005,
Canadian farmers planted 5.8 million hectares of biotech canola, corn and
soybeans. Adoption rates of herbicide-tolerant canola have reached 82
percent, with biotech corn and soybean adoption at more than 60 percent.

In the United States, 49.8 million hectares constitute 55 percent of the
world's biotech-farming area. According to a 2005 report by the National
Center for Food and Agricultural Policy, biotech crops boosted U.S. farm
yields by 6.6 billion pounds, improved collective farm income by $2.3
billion and reduced pesticide use by 15.6 million pounds.

Mark Williams and his family run a 7,500-acre farm in semi-arid West Texas,
where they produce wheat, cotton, corn and cattle. They choose biotechnology
because it benefits soil conservation and protects young cotton crops, which
suffer damage when high winds blow sand. Biotechnology enables Williams to
practice a strip-till system that leaves stalks in the field and keeps bare
dirt to a minimum to protect young seedlings.

"Biotechnology has played an extremely important role on my farm," Williams
said. "We've increased yields, improved weed control and decreased the total
amount of spraying. Biotech crops also have provided more time for other
work and free time, and has just made me a better producer overall."

The biotech revolution is in motion. The combination of higher yields,
greater pest resistance and lower dependence on irrigation makes biotech a
resource too powerful to ignore ? whether in Bangladesh or an Iowa
cornfield.

[www.whybiotech.com]