Economic cost adopting GM crops

Many reports of organizations or in support or criticism of genetically modified foods have been published, and the number of applications has increased or decreased the profitability of agricultural practices, including GMOs can be found in world literature.

A review of the National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy concluded that biotechnology has and will continue to have a significant impact on improved efficiency, reduced costs and reduce pesticide use producer. GM Bt cotton appears to have significant benefits for small farmers in many parts of the world. On the other hand, some report lower yields, continued dependency on chemical sprays, the loss of exports and profits for farmers critical reduced following the use of biotechnology.

A U.S. Department of Agriculture report on the economic impact of GM crops summarized a positive impact of the adoption of Bt cotton on the farm system, but a negative impact in the case of an improvement in the performance of Bt corn also been observed with the herbicide tolerant maize, while significant was observed with soybeans resistant to herbicides.

A detailed study by the European Commission on the economic impact of GM crops on agriculture has concluded that the rapid adoption by farmers in the United States was the result of expectations of strong profitability. However, there is no conclusive evidence on profitability at farm level of GM crops.

The advantage of the land the most immediate and tangible benefits to farmers of GM crops seems to be a combination of performance and convenience of genetically modified crops - in particular the varieties resistant to herbicides. These crops allow for more flexibility in cropping practices and in some cases, due to reduced work or flexible. For insect-resistant crops like Bt corn, production losses are reduced compared to conventional maize. However, cost-effectiveness of Bt corn depends on a number of factors, in particular growing conditions.

The profitability of GM crops should be tested over a long period of time. First, there are significant fluctuations in annual yield and price and it is difficult to isolate the possible effects of biotechnology. Second, changes in supply and demand of the food chain must be considered together. A recent study analyzed the international spread of the result of the use of GMOs shows the need to differentiate between cultures and regions. In China, a region with a base generally high pesticide and pesticide poisoning among farmers, a report showed that use of Bt cotton significantly reduced pesticide use without reducing the output per hectare and the quality cotton. This led to significant health and economic benefits for small farmers.

There seems to be evidence of the profitability of GM crops in specific situations, especially growing conditions are strongly dependent on regional agro-ecological factors, particularly the reference pressure of pests and pesticides. On the other hand, it seems that there are situations where these factors do not allow the profitability of GM crops, or when other practices for the installation may be more value for various reasons or market Regional.