BENEFITS OF FOOD & AG BIOTECHNOLOGY

Genetically engineered (GE) technology incorporates desirable traits from nature into crops, resulting in plants that can be healthier, more nutritious and better for the environment. This process is done without introducing anything unnatural or using chemicals.

Here are the many benefits of agricultural biotechnology:

Shrinking our Environmental Footprint

• Biotechnology enables farmers to be better stewards of the environment, allowing farmers large and small to grow more crops on less land while using fewer pesticides and less water.
• In the United States, the adoption of GE crops resulted in pesticide use reduction of 46.4 million pounds in 2003. Globally, GE crops have reduced pesticide spraying (1996-2011) by 9%, or 975 million pounds.

Lowering the Price of Food

• Because they require fewer pesticides, land and water, biotech crops keep food production costs down resulting in lower prices for consumers. Biotechnology helps reduce the price of crops used for food, such as corn, soybeans and sugar beets by as much as 15-30%. Mercaris, a market data researcher, found that 2013 prices for “non-GMO” corn averaged 51 cents per bushel higher than corn produced using biotechnology.

Alleviating Hunger and Malnutrition Around the World

• Biotech crops have helped feed more than 300 million Americans and a global population of 7 billion – of which 1 in 8 suffer from hunger and malnutrition.
• By 2050, the global population is expected to rise to 9 billion. Experts predict we will need 70% more agricultural production to keep pace – utilizing GE crops that increase productivity while reducing land, water and pesticide use will be critical to this achievement.