Two reports offer opposing takes on biotech crops and their relationsip to pesticides

Twelve years after the first gene-altered crops appeared on the market, two new studies show the debate over the effects of such crops is still strong, reports Rick Weiss of The Washington Post. (At right, a researcher tests a modified soybean plant in a photo from multinational agriculture conglomerate Monsanto.)

One report claimed, "The widening adoption of genetically engineered crops by farmers around the world is reducing global pesticide use, increasing agricultural yields and bringing unprecedented prosperity and food security to millions of the world's poorest citizens," Weiss writes. The other said genetic engineering "is fueling greater use of pesticides, putting crop yields at risk, driving small farmers out of business and decreasing global food security by giving a single company control over much of the world's seed supply."

The two reports were released yesterday, one funded by the biotech industry and the other by environmental and consumer groups. You can probably guess which one is which. "More than 280 million acres of them were planted in 23 countries last year, a 12 percent growth in acreage and an increase of two countries compared with 2006," Weiss writes, noting that the two studies interpret these stats differently.

In its report, the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications, which gets funding from biotech industry leader Monsanto and others, said the modified crops have brought socioeconomic advantages for farmers and will be an essential part of the United Nations campaign to reduce poverty and hunger by 50 percent by 2015. The Friends of the Earth report said pesticide-resistant crops have sparked more herbicide use while also transferring their immunity on to some weed species and contaminating some commercial crops. (Read more)