On the International Day for Biodiversity, CropLife International calls on farmers, agricultural researchers and policymakers around the world to renew their dedication to the support and advancement of research and education into sustainable agricultural practices that preserve soil; one of our world’s most valuable resources....
In plant biotechnology, stewardship is a lifecycle approach to product management. It is the responsible and ethical way to manage biotech-derived plant products from their discovery and development to their use and eventual discontinuation. ...
As additional countries adopt plant biotechnology in Africa, CropLife International and its global network continue to work with farmers and regulators on ensuring responsible and effective stewardship of biotech crops in the region. “While biotechnology awareness and outreach continue to be important, the principles of stewardship to ensure the technology’s safe application are critical,” says Dr. Florence Wambugu, CEO of Africa Harvest. “Strengthening Africa's capacity in sound biotechnology management is vital to for enhanced food security.” ...
All forms of agricultural production have historically endured losses to weeds and farmers are continually challenged with the fact that weed control methods have limited life spans. CropLife International held a panel discussion at the 2013 BIO International Convention in Chicago in April to discuss how industry, academia and farmers continually update their weed management strategies to ensure the longevity of herbicide-tolerant (HT) traits. ...
After 16 years, more than 16 million farmers in 28 countries grow over 170 million hectares of biotech crops. As worldwide use continues to increase, some policymakers have raised questions about what would happen in the unlikely event a biotech crop might cause unintentional damage to biological diversity. In response, biotech companies established the Compact: a clear, fair and binding arbitration process for states seeking legal redress in case of such damage resulting from biotech crops....
In honour of World Intellectual Property Day, CropLife International has identified the top five facts everyone should know about the importance of intellectual property (IP) to agricultural innovation. Understanding how IP protections can encourage new innovations and drive the growth of agriculture, as well as supporting effective IP rights, will be critical to meeting future food demands...
The proper use of crop protection products protects farmers and the environment – key components of good stewardship – but the benefits reach even further. Responsible pesticide use leads to higher quality, more abundant harvests and opens the door to greater economic opportunities for farmers....
CropLife International’s Spray Service Provider (SSP) programmes provide an efficient solution to an issue facing small-scale farmers across the developing world: how to responsibly and effectively apply crop protection products while improving yields. With efficiency and safety in mind, the programme educates and certifies a select group of farmers on best spraying practices, provides them with equipment and safety gear, and teaches them how to offer their spray services to other farmers in their area....
With the support of CropLife Côte d’Ivoire and German Technical Cooperation (GIZ), small-scale cocoa farmers and agrochemical retailers in Côte d’Ivoire are learning about the responsible use of pesticides as part of an overall approach to managing their crops....
In China, the public and private sectors are successfully collaborating on stewardship projects that will help support efforts to bring food security to a nation of nearly 1.34 billion people. Together, CropLife China member companies and China’s National Agri-Technical Extension and Service Centre (part of the country’s Ministry of Agriculture) have trained thousands of farmers on the responsible use, effective application and secure storage of agrochemicals. ...
In February, the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) released its annual global biotech crop acreage report, which found that farmers worldwide grew 170 million hectares of biotech crops in 2012. Biotech crops are the most rapidly adopted agricultural technology in history — today, they are grown in 28 countries by 17.3 million farmers, a 100-fold increase since they were first commercially planted in 1996. ......
Two new countries planted biotech crops in 2012 — Sudan and Cuba — and several more are poised to adopt biotech crops in the coming years, according to the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA)...
Since their commercial introduction almost 20 years ago, biotech crops have helped significantly reduce agriculture’s environmental footprint........
Collaborations between the public and private sectors help provide farmers worldwide with access to plant science technology....
Herbicide-tolerant biotech crops are enabling farmers around the world to use environmentally sound herbicides instead of tillage for weed control – known as conservation or no-till practices. ...
Growing more food per hectare takes pressure off of the need to convert natural habitats into more farmland – helping protect our planet’s incredible wealth of biodiversity. If higher yielding biotech crops had not been available from 1996 to 2010, an additional 91 million ...
Biotech crops are the fastest adopted crop technology in the history of agriculture. In its annual report on the global status of commercialized biotech crops, the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) reported that 16.7 million farmers grew biotech crops on 160 million hectares in 2011. ...
Jan 31 (Reuters) - Cotton production in Burkina Faso, one of the first countries in Africa to approve genetically modified cotton, jumped 57.5 percent in 2012-2013 due to an increase in GMO crops, the producers' association said. ...
Plant diseases pose a serious threat to the world’s fruit crop production. In the U.S., it’s estimated that without the use of fungicides to control plant diseases, yields of most fruit and vegetable crops would decline by 50 to 95 percent. By mitigating the effects of plant diseases, U.S. farmers are able to produce 97 billion pounds of additional food and fiber, providing a sustainable supply of fruits and vegetables that are necessary to a healthy and varied diet. Plant biotechnology can be another tool to reduce losses to diseases. While disease resistant traits are commonly added
By 2050 the world’s farmers will need to produce 70 percent more food on less land than ever before. Plant biotechnology is being used to create higher-yielding varieties that can help farmers meet this goal. ...
The plant science industry is committed to promoting effective stewardship of its products, in and beyond the field. A key focus of the stewardship programmes is training farmers on Integrated Pest Management (IPM), including the responsible use of crop protection products. Farmers learn a variety of techniques to sustainably manage pests on their farms, such as preventing pest build-up by ‘growing a healthy crop’, preserving natural predators and using ...
Herbicide-tolerant biotech crops reduce the need for tillage to control weeds, meaning less soil disturbance and fewer passes over the field with heavy tillage equipment. ...
In South Asia, rice is traditionally grown by manually transplanting seedlings into flooded soil to help control weeds and give the rice crop a head start against future weed pressure. Then, during the season, weeds are typically controlled by hand weeding. ...
A key element of sustainable agriculture includes protecting biodiversity to the greatest extent possible. Advances in agricultural technologies, such as innovative crop protection products and biotech seeds, allow farmers to make the most of existing cropland to prevent expansion into natural habitats. ...
Around the world, herbicide-tolerant biotech crops are enabling farmers to use environmentally sound herbicides instead of tillage for weed control. This switch to conversation agriculture practices (growing crops with minimal soil disturbance) reduces soil ...
The Spray Service Provider (SSP) Programme is an initiative that promotes the responsible use of crop protection products among the small-scale farming community in Zambia. The programme trains selected farmers who become SSPs ...
Using crop protection products and higher-yielding biotech varieties, farmers are now growing more food on each hectare of land. This helps take the pressure off of the need to convert natural habitats into more farmland. ...
The switch to conservation tillage uses less fuel and keeps more carbon in the soil – helping farmers mitigate climate change. For example, in Brazil, lower fuel use associated with the adoption of biotechnology from 1996/97 to 2010/11 reduced C02 emissions by 468,400 tons, which equates to preserving 3.5 million trees. ...
The plant science industry is always developing new agricultural technologies and tools, which increase crop production on less land in a more sustainable way. Biotech crops, for example, have helped grow more food per acre, including an increase of 97.5 million tonnes of soybeans, 159.4 million tonnes of corn and 6.1 million tonnes of canola worldwide from 1996 to 2010. ...
In June 2012, permits for biotech soybeans were granted to seven Mexican states covering 253,500 hectares in Campeche, Quintana Roo, Yucatan, San Luis Potosi, Tamaulipas, Veracruz and Chiapas. Biotech soybeans have been planted in pilot stages in Mexico since 1995, and the recent approval of commercial soybean production ...
Australia is becoming better known for its wines than kangaroos due to its ability to produce high-quality grapes. In fact, the country is now the fourth largest exporter of wine around the world. How do Australian farmers do it? ...
From lettuce to tomatoes to carrots, ingredients for fresh salads in the U.S. are superior and plentiful thanks to crop protection products, according to a 2009 study by the Crop Protection Research Institute. ...
Uganda is the largest consumer of bananas in the world and among the top producers in Africa. Adults there consume an average of 191 kilograms of bananas per year or more than four averaged-sized bananas (about a half kilogram) per day. ...
As climate change continues to cause unusual and unpredictable weather around the world, it creates new challenges for farmers, who already have a difficult time getting Mother Nature on their side. ...
Biotechnology is being used to develop crops tolerant to drought, salinity, flooding and excessive heat, which can help farmers better deal with erratic weather patterns. For example, salt-tolerant rice in Africa has the potential to increase rice productivity and profitability for smallholder farmers and spare fresh water for human consumption. ...
Agriculture underlies the economy of Tanzania, a coastal country in east Africa. It accounts for about half of the national income and provides jobs for about 80 percent of Tanzanians. To improve agricultural production and distribution, the government of Tanzania, agribusinesses and the farming community are working together in southern Tanzania to improve every link of the region’s agricultural value chain. ...
As a result of a collaborative effort by public and private partners, biotech crops tailored to specific climates will help address a range of challenges facing farmers in Africa, Asia and Latin America. ...
Malaria, dengue and other insect-transmitted diseases are some of the biggest human health problems in developing countries –more than one million die annually from malaria alone with the highest incidence of cases in Africa. ...