ABSTRACT
Table 8.1 Global Area of Genetically ModiŸed Crops in 2010: By Country (million hectares)
Rank Country Area
(million hectares) Biotech crops
1 United States 66.8 Maize, soybean, cotton, canola, sugar beet, alfalfa, papaya, squash
2 Brazil 25.4 Soybean, maize, cotton 3 Argentina 22.9 Soybean, maize, cotton 4 India 9.4 Cotton 5 Canada 8.8 Canola, maize, soybean, sugar beet 6 China 3.5 Cotton, tomato, poplar, papaya, sweet pepper 7 Paraguay 2.6 Soybean 8 Pakistan 2.4 Cotton 9 South Africa 2.2 Maize, soybean, cotton
10 Uruguay 1.1 Soybean, maize 11 Bolivia 0.9 Soybean 12 Australia 0.7 Cotton, canola 13 Philippines 0.5 Maize 14 Myanmar 0.3 Cotton 15 Burkina Faso 0.3 Cotton 16 Spain 0.1 Maize 17 Mexico 0.1 Cotton, soybean 18 Columbia <0.1 Cotton 19 Chile <0.1 Maize, soybean, canola 20 Honduras <0.1 Maize 21 Portugal <0.1 Maize 22 Czech Republic <0.1 Maize, potato 23 Poland <0.1 Maize 24 Egypt <0.1 Maize 25 Slovakia <0.1 Maize 26 Costa Rica <0.1 Cotton, soybean 27 Romania <0.1 Maize 28 Sweden <0.1 Potato 29 Germany <0.1 Potato
and Saxena, 2009). Since the commercial introduction of GM plants, the acreage dedicated to GM crop cultivation has increased each year, such that the majority of all major crop plants grown in the United States-soybean, cotton, and maize-are genetically engineered (U.S. Department of Agriculture [USDA], 2010). Developing countries also continue to increase their share of global GM crop production and now account for almost half (46%) of the global hectarage of GM crops (James, 2010). This rapid and widespread adoption of GM crops has led to a dramatic shift in the agricultural landscape since the mid-1990s and has raised questions about the impact of agricultural biotechnology on nontarget organisms in the soil environment.
