Mini-symposium on GM Crops in Asia by Hokkaido Bio-Industry Association, Japan

On March 20, 2012, Hokkaido Bio-Industry Association (HOBIA) held a mini-symposium on Agriculture: Current Status and Future Direction at Hokkaido University. Dr. Fusao Tomita, Professor Emeritus of the University and ISAAA Nippon Biotechnology Information Center director reported the current status of GM crops in the world. He stated that GM crops are now commercially planted in160 Mha and half of them in Asia, where there is an expected rapid increase in population. GM crops are good for environmental protection in terms of agricultural productivity and reduction of carbon dioxide emission.

Yoshimasa Miyai, Kuniaki Ohdate, and Hiroyuki Baba, Japanese farmers who visited the Philippines at the end of January 2012 recounted their briefings with the Philippine regulators, visits to the biotech laboratories and greenhouses of the International Rice Research Institute, and discussions with biotech corn farmers in Pampanga. They also reported rapid increase in GM crop adoption  in the Philippines and observed that biotech crop farmers are very happy with their increase in productivity and incomes, as well as having a safe and effective pest management technology. 

 View the original article (in Japanese) in (March issue, p.188) of "Zaikai Sapporo" and online at "Zaikai Sapporo Noguchi" noguchi@zaikaisapporo.co.jp. For news on biotechnology in Japan, contact Prof. Fusao Tomita at f.tomita@isaaa.org