The Use of GM Crops in Developing Countries
Current and possible uses of GM crops in developing countries
3.26 As we have said, concern has been expressed about the speed with which GM crops have been, or are intended to be, introduced in some developing countries (see paragraphs 1.10-1.13).23 With regard to food crops, critics point out that despite increasing populations, over the past 35 years, growth in global food production has outstripped growth in population by 16%. They argue that current global food production is sufficient to provide food for the world’s population, if only inequalities in access to food were eliminated.24 GM crops are frequently perceived as a ‘technological fix’, proposed by those who fail to address the underlying causes of hunger and poverty, which really require economic, political and social change.
3.27 We are aware of these and further general objections and address them in more detail in Chapter 4. Here, we consider what kind of GM crops could offer benefits to farmers in developing countries, and what the likely risks might be. We also aim to assess the claim that GM technology may only benefit agrochemical companies and large-scale commercial farmers in developed countries, and may be of no use or even harmful for small-scale, resource-poor farmers in developing countries.25 We first consider in more detail the use of GM cotton in China and Africa. We then discuss five examples of research where genetic modification is used to improve traits of rice, sweet potatoes and bananas. These crops are important to many people in developing countries, but have been largely neglected by plant breeders elsewhere. We also examine issues arising from the use of GM soybean in South America and the implications of modifying crops for the production of biopharmaceuticals.
Footnotes23 Oxfam (1999) Genetically Modified Crops, World Trade and Food Security (Oxford: Oxfam); Five Year Freeze (2002) Feeding or Fooling the World? (London: Five Year Freeze).
24 Five Year Freeze (2002) Feeding or Fooling the World? (London: Five Year Freeze).
25 See, for example the study on possible benefits and disadvantages of GM coffee in Hawaii, Action Aid (2001) Robbing Coffee’s Cradle - GM coffee and its threat to poor farmers (London: Action Aid).