Global Biotech Area Breaks 100 Million Hectare Mark

Biotech crop adoption increased to 12 million hectares or 13 percent to reach 102 million hectares in 2006 – breaking the 100 million hectare mark for the first time and achieving the second highest growth in the last five years. Growth for the period 1996 to 2006 registered an unprecedented 60-fold increase, the highest adoption rate of any crop technology. The number of farmers planting biotech crops also increased to 10.3 million farmers, up from 8.5 million farmers in 2005. These were forwarded in a report by Dr. Clive James, chairman and founder of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA).

The growth of biotech crop adoption was also substantially higher in the developing world at 21 percent versus the industrialized nations where adoption grew 9 percent. This growth is expected to continue in the second decade of commercialization.

The press release about the report is available in English, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, German, and French, while the Executive Summary is available in English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic, Thai, and Bangla. Other language editions (i.e. Chinese, Swahili, Hindi, and Korean) of the press release and Executive Summary will be released on dates to coincide with national media launches. Visit http://www.isaaa.org to download these documents.