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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Maricopa, Arizona » U.S. Arid Land Agricultural Research Center » Pest Management and Biocontrol Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #229590
Title: The present and future role of insect-resistant GM cotton in IPM

Author
item Naranjo, Steven
item RUBERSON, JOHN - UNIV OF GA, TIFTON, GA
item SHARMA, HARI - CRISAT, INDIA
item WILSON, LEWIS - CSIRO AUSTRALIA
item WU, KONGMING - CAAS, BEIJING, CHINA

Submitted to: International Congress of Entomology
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/15/2008
Publication Date: 7/6/2008
Citation: Naranjo, S.E. 2008. The present and future role of insect-resistant GM cotton in IPM. XXIII International Congress of Entomology 6-12 July, 2008, Durban, South Africa. pg 15-22

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Transgenic cottons producing Cry toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) control lepidopteran pests and were first commercially grown in Australia, Mexico and the USA in 1996. As of 2007, six additional countries (Argentina, Brazil, China, Colombia, India, and South Africa) now grow Bt cotton on a total production area of over 12.2 million hectares. The technology primarily provides highly selective and effective control of bollworms, the most damaging pests of cotton worldwide. Between 1996 and 2005 the deployment of Bt cotton reduced the volume of insecticide active ingredient used for pest control by 94.5 million kg and increased farm income through reduced costs and improved yields by US$7.5 billion, with most of the benefit accrued by farmers in developing nations. Reductions in insecticide use have broadened opportunities for biological control and recent meta-analysis has demonstrated that Bt cotton has little or no effect on abundance and interactions among functional guilds of non-target arthropods. Most other pest management tactics in Bt cotton have remained largely unchanged. Several non-target pests have become more problematic in Bt cotton fields in some countries largely due to reductions in insecticide use for target pests. Preemptive resistance management has helped to preserve the efficacy of the technology. New products are in the pipeline to improve the effectiveness of genetically modified cotton cultivars for resistance to lepidopteran and other pests. Debate over food and environmental safety, regulatory oversight, and farming community welfare are likely to continue as the technology moves forward with new crops and new adopting countries.