ISAAA Annual Report on Biotech Crops for 2015 Launched in Beijing, China

The ISAAA Annual Brief (51) on the 20^th Anniversary (1996 to 2015) of the Global Commercialization of Biotech Crops and Biotech Crop Highlights in 2015, authored by ISAAA Founder and Emeritus Chair Dr. Clive James was launched in a press conference in Beijing, China last April 13, 2016. The Report was presented by Dr. Paul S. Teng, ISAAA Chair of the Board who reported the 20 year achievements of biotech crops and the highlights of 2015.

The global hectarage in 2015 was 179.7 million hectares, planted by 28 countries, a decrease of 1% (1.8 million hectares) from the 181.5 million hectares in 2014. The Report emphasized that this marginal decrease is due to current low prices of commodity crops soybean, corn, cotton and canola, which are likely to revert to higher hectarage levels when crop prices improve. Future prospects include expansion of current biotech crop hectarage, new biotech crops in the pipeline and the potential of the new breeding technologies in developing new traits and products.

Presentations were also made by Dr. Randy Hautea, ISAAA Global Coordinator on the Overview of Biotech Crops in Asia and by Mr. Hernan Viola, the Agro-Industrial Attache of the embassy of Argentina in China, on the Biotech Benefits to Argentine Agriculture. Some 30 media outlets attended the press conference from trade, general, business, online, broadcast and international media.

ISAAA Brief 51 documents can be accessed at the ISAAA website. Contact knowledge.center@isaaa.org for more details of the press conference.