More of Less isn't Less of More: Assessing Environmental Impacts of Genetically Modified Seeds in Brazilian Agriculture (original) (raw)
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Assessing environmental impact of genetically modified seeds in Brazilian agriculture
Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, 2022
Genetically modified (GM) seeds have had relevant impacts on worldwide agriculture, even with a limited number of essential traits launched in the markets. The focus on platforms crops has favored the combination of traditional breeding, GM insertion, and diffusion in agriculture. One of the remarkable features of the GM traits has been the close link with pest and weed control systems. We investigate the environmental effects due to pesticides for two different GM seeds: insect resistant (IR) cotton and herbicide tolerant (HT) soybeans in a particular period of Brazilian agriculture, 2009-2013. We use a dataset on commercial farms' use of pesticides and biotechnology in Brazil to document environmental effects of GM traits. We explore within farm variation for farmers planting conventional and GM seeds to identify the effect of adoption on the environmental impact of pesticides measured as the quantity of active ingredients of chemicals and the Environmental Impact Quotient (EIQ) index. The findings show that the IR trait reduces application of insecticides by 22% and the associated environmental impact by 20% the environmental impact of insecticides. However, for HT traits, we find that application of herbicides increases by 55.8% and the associated environmental impact by 44.4%, showing a significant increase in the EIQ. The HT results are driven by an increase of less toxic herbicides elevenfold larger than the decrease in less toxic ones, which we interpret as evidence of weak substitutability between herbicides of different toxicity levels. Addressing what happened in the last decade, the paper also presents a view of the transformations in GM usage in Brazil, focusing on the considerable success in adopting stacked genes. Future perspectives point to a more diversified menu of technologies, crops, and adopting countries, going beyond platform crops and more prominent agriculture exporters.
Use of genetically modified crops and pesticides in Brazil: growing hazards
Ciencia & saude coletiva, 2017
Genetically modified (GM) crops were officially authorized in Brazil in 2003. In this documentary study, we aimed to identify possible changes in the patterns of pesticide use after the adoption of this technology over a span of 13 years (2000 to 2012). The following variables were analyzed: Pesticide use (kg), Pesticide use per capita (kg/inhab), Pesticide and herbicide use per area (kg/ha) and productivity (kg/ha). Contrary to the initial expectations of decreasing pesticide use following the adoption of GM crops, overall pesticide use in Brazil increased 1.6-fold between the years 2000 and 2012. During the same period, pesticide use for soybean increased 3-fold. This study shows that the adoption of GM crops in Brazil has led to an increase in pesticide use with possible increases in environmental and human exposure and associated negative impacts.
Genetically Modified Corn Adoption in Brazil, Costs and Production Strategy
2020
Genetically modified (GM) corn accounting for 90% of total area in Brazil. In this paper, we report the results of a four-year field survey (2010/11, 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16) on corn production costs in Brazil, for two harvests and eleven states. The survey used both a quantitative and a qualitative approach: the first one compares GM and NonGM varieties costs in the two harvests, as well as the evolution of costs for GM corn, and the second part reports the results of a qualitative field survey. Results showed that GM corn costs are higher when compared to NonGM corn, due to higher GM seed prices, which more than compensate for the decrease in insecticides costs. When comparing the evolution of GM corn costs, seed costs tended to decrease, but insecticides had an increasing trend. The qualitative survey interviewed 314 agents, and the results showed that, in most cases, risk reduction, genetic potential, and low availability of NonGM seeds explained GM adoption. These two last...
This paper presents an empirical analysis of the impact of the diffusion of genetically modified Soybean (Roundup Ready variety) on the level of inter-crop diversity in Argentina, the country with the biggest transgenic Soybean area worldwide. Farmers are progressively and quickly substituting local landraces with the transgenic Soybean owing to the best guarantee of profitability, that it represents in the short term. The wide adoption of this genetically modified crop risks of reducing the level of inter-crop diversity and of promoting monoculture in large scale, with a potential effects of loss of resilience at the level of the agro-ecological system as a whole, that could affect its stability and cause a loss in the farmers' expected welfare. These hypotheses are tested using a two stage estimation approach with a time series data analysis. Findings suggest that the rate of diffusion of the Roundup Ready Soybean is associated with a decrease in the level of inter-crop diversity, and that inter-crop diversity is positively correlated with an increase in the variance in soybeans' yield, with possible negative outcomes for the sustainability of the agriculture, for the food safety system and for the economic stability of the market oriented agriculture of the country, more and more focused on the production and the exportation of soybean.
Environmental Research Letters, 2013
The land use impacts of globalization and of increasing global food and fuel demand depend on the trade relationships that emerge between consuming and producing countries. In the case of soybean production, increasing trade between South American farmers and consumers in Asia and Europe has facilitated soybean expansion in the Amazon, Chaco, and Cerrado biomes. While these telecouplings have been well documented, there is little understanding of how quality preferences influence trade patterns and supply chains, incentivizing or discouraging particular land use practices. In this study we provide empirical evidence that Brazil's continued production of non-genetically modified (GM) soybeans has increased its competitive advantage in European countries with preferences against GM foods. Brazil's strong trade relationship with European consumers has facilitated an upgrading of the soybean supply chain. Upgraded soybean supply chains create new conservation opportunities by allowing farmers to differentiate their products based on environmental quality in order to access premiums in niche markets in Europe. These interactions between GM preferences, trade flows, and supply chain structure help to explain why Brazilian soybean farmers have adopted environmental certification programs on a larger scale than Argentinian, Bolivian, Paraguayan, and Uruguayan soybean producers.
GM Crops & Food, 2018
This study assesses the economic and environmental impacts that have arisen from the adoption and use of genetically modified (GM) herbicide tolerant (HT) and insect resistant (IR) soybeans in South America in the five years since first planted in 2013/14. A total of 73.6 million hectares have been planted to soybeans containing these traits since 2013/14, with farmers benefiting from an increase in income of 7.64billion.Foreveryextra7.64 billion. For every extra 7.64billion.Foreveryextra1 spent on this seed relative to conventional seed, farmers have gained an additional $3.88 in extra income. These income gains have arisen from a combination of higher yields (+ 9.2% across the four countries using the technology) and lower costs of weed and pest control. The seed technology has reduced pesticide spraying by 10.44 million kg (−15.1%) and, as a result, decreased the environmental impact associated with herbicide and insecticide use on these crops (as measured by the indicator, the Environmental Impact Quotient (EIQ)) by 30.6%. The technology has also facilitated important cuts in fuel use and tillage changes, resulting in a significant reduction in the release of greenhouse gas emissions from the GM cropping area. In 2017/18, this was equivalent to removing 3.3 million cars from the roads.