By: Gabriella Dodgson
May 2020 - Reflections on Bt cotton
The news is often filled with new innovation pertaining to sustainable agriculture. The one that we tend to hear the most is genetically modified organisms or more commonly known as GMO’s. “Genetically modified cotton is currently grown on 25 million hectares around the world [1]”. This cash crop is especially important to India as they are the largest producer of cotton in the world. BT cotton was promised as a miracle solution to reduce pesticide use and allow farmers to increase their cotton yield.
The first approval for cotton cultivation of BT hybrids was given in 2002. BT cotton was created by a company known as Monsanto, and few promises the company made to Indian farmers have come true. Monsanto made two main promises to India farmers about this strain of cotton; first that it would reduce the amount of pesticides farmers need to buy to control pests, second it would increase yield and thus income. This paper will discuss how the Monsanto company fell short of these promises and greatly affected many farmers lives.
Currently, Bt cotton is being infested by the pink bollworm that has grown resistant to the bollgard-2 genetic trait, Monsanto promised this gene would protect the crop. “The resulting hybrids are hemizygous, which means they only express one copy of the Bt gene. This means that some seeds are toxic to the pink bollworm and some are not [2]”. This is significant because the Bt seeds initially cost more money for the farmers and now are creating havoc on their farms as the pink bollworm infests the cotton. The Indian Government is now considering cutting the royalties to Monsanto as thousands of farms suffer the consequences of their actions. This is why it is important to thoroughly study the effectiveness of genetically modified organisms before mass producing them in order to make a profit. It is important that agricultural sectors create regulations that prevent farmers from suffering and declaring bankruptcy due to poor science such as we see with Bt cotton.
Monsanto also promised farmers that Bt cotton would increase the annual yield of cotton. “After the introduction of Bt cotton, the yield almost doubled within six years. However, the decline in yield is only about 15 percent in the last six or seven years. Therefore, Bt cotton still outperforms conventional varieties [3]”. This is significant because Monsanto did promise an increased yield, and this did occur in India. However, an economic analysis would need to be done to see if the increase yield outweighs the extra costs spent on the Bt cotton seeds and pesticide use. It seems that there is no easy answer when it comes to the use of Bt cotton. It can also be argued that the improvements in yield may have been due to improvements in infrastructure and agricultural practices within India.
It can be argued that in some ways Bt cotton was successful. Interestingly, Bt cotton had success in some regions of India. Many states in recent years have reached record average yields. Farmers may have also lacked information on growing conditions, pesticide use, the importance of planting proper seeds and the earning to be expected from the plant. The lack of agricultural education could also play a part in the success of the cotton. Thus, more research will need to be conducted to understand the role agricultural education plays in sustainable cotton cultivation.
Currently, over 90% of all the cotton grown in India is Bt cotton. The intense use of Bt cotton has provided many problems for Indian farmers and these will continue to grow unless an affordable option is found. As an essential part of Indian economy, it is important that the government creates regulations preventing companies from false advertising of their products. Bt cotton has become a huge economic threat for India and farmers livelihoods, it is time that the government come to the aid of those affected by Monsanto.
Sources:
[1] “Genetically Modified Cotton.” Genetically Modified Cotton. Ontario, Canada : Canadian Biotechnology Action Network , 2013. www.cban.ca/cotton.
[2] “Indian Farmers Double Yields with Bt Cotton, but Pest Resistance Issues Complicate Its Advantages.” Genetic Literacy Project, August 6, 2018. https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2018/08/06/indian-farmers-double-yields-with-bt-cotton-but-pest-resistance-issues-complicate-its-advantages/.
[3] Pulla, Priyanka. “A Perfect Storm in the Cotton Field.” The Hindu. The Hindu, March 28, 2018. https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a-perfect-storm-in-the-cotton-field/article23357894.ece.
May 2020 - Reflections on Bt cotton
The news is often filled with new innovation pertaining to sustainable agriculture. The one that we tend to hear the most is genetically modified organisms or more commonly known as GMO’s. “Genetically modified cotton is currently grown on 25 million hectares around the world [1]”. This cash crop is especially important to India as they are the largest producer of cotton in the world. BT cotton was promised as a miracle solution to reduce pesticide use and allow farmers to increase their cotton yield.
 |
| Pink bollworms in a cotton boll (Source: US Dept. of Agriculture) |
Currently, Bt cotton is being infested by the pink bollworm that has grown resistant to the bollgard-2 genetic trait, Monsanto promised this gene would protect the crop. “The resulting hybrids are hemizygous, which means they only express one copy of the Bt gene. This means that some seeds are toxic to the pink bollworm and some are not [2]”. This is significant because the Bt seeds initially cost more money for the farmers and now are creating havoc on their farms as the pink bollworm infests the cotton. The Indian Government is now considering cutting the royalties to Monsanto as thousands of farms suffer the consequences of their actions. This is why it is important to thoroughly study the effectiveness of genetically modified organisms before mass producing them in order to make a profit. It is important that agricultural sectors create regulations that prevent farmers from suffering and declaring bankruptcy due to poor science such as we see with Bt cotton.
Monsanto also promised farmers that Bt cotton would increase the annual yield of cotton. “After the introduction of Bt cotton, the yield almost doubled within six years. However, the decline in yield is only about 15 percent in the last six or seven years. Therefore, Bt cotton still outperforms conventional varieties [3]”. This is significant because Monsanto did promise an increased yield, and this did occur in India. However, an economic analysis would need to be done to see if the increase yield outweighs the extra costs spent on the Bt cotton seeds and pesticide use. It seems that there is no easy answer when it comes to the use of Bt cotton. It can also be argued that the improvements in yield may have been due to improvements in infrastructure and agricultural practices within India.
 |
| Cotton fibers awaiting processing in a factory near Coimbatore, India (Photo: R. Sivanpillai) |
It can be argued that in some ways Bt cotton was successful. Interestingly, Bt cotton had success in some regions of India. Many states in recent years have reached record average yields. Farmers may have also lacked information on growing conditions, pesticide use, the importance of planting proper seeds and the earning to be expected from the plant. The lack of agricultural education could also play a part in the success of the cotton. Thus, more research will need to be conducted to understand the role agricultural education plays in sustainable cotton cultivation.
Currently, over 90% of all the cotton grown in India is Bt cotton. The intense use of Bt cotton has provided many problems for Indian farmers and these will continue to grow unless an affordable option is found. As an essential part of Indian economy, it is important that the government creates regulations preventing companies from false advertising of their products. Bt cotton has become a huge economic threat for India and farmers livelihoods, it is time that the government come to the aid of those affected by Monsanto.
Sources:
[1] “Genetically Modified Cotton.” Genetically Modified Cotton. Ontario, Canada : Canadian Biotechnology Action Network , 2013. www.cban.ca/cotton.
[2] “Indian Farmers Double Yields with Bt Cotton, but Pest Resistance Issues Complicate Its Advantages.” Genetic Literacy Project, August 6, 2018. https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2018/08/06/indian-farmers-double-yields-with-bt-cotton-but-pest-resistance-issues-complicate-its-advantages/.
[3] Pulla, Priyanka. “A Perfect Storm in the Cotton Field.” The Hindu. The Hindu, March 28, 2018. https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a-perfect-storm-in-the-cotton-field/article23357894.ece.
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