Abstract
Transgenic crops are the subject of lively debate and controversy. Despite such controversy, transgenic soybean has undergone a rapid expansion. Among various types of transgenic crops, herbicide-tolerant crops appear to many to be of limited interest, especially in Europe. Nonetheless, herbicide-tolerant crops are the most widely spread in the world. Indeed, glyphosate-tolerant soybean was notably the most cultivated transgenic plant in the world in 2006. In the USA 91% of soybean was transgenic in 2007. How can this particularly significant diffusion in the USA be explained, and what are its impacts? Such issues are addressed in this article, using surveys, studies of numerous statistical data and literature analysis. A first section underlines the importance of soybean in the current development of transgenic crops in the world, and the favourable context for their expansion in the USA. Then follows an analysis of the advantages and drawbacks of transgenic soybean for American farmers. Factors explaining the rapid diffusion of transgenic soybean are also analysed. A comparison of transgenic vs. conventional soybean reveals that transgenic glyphosate-tolerant soybean allows both the simplification of weed control and greater work flexibility. Cropping transgenic soybean also fits well with conservation tillage. Transgenic soybean has an economic margin similar to conventional soybean, despite a higher seed cost. The next section describes the evolution of the use of herbicides with transgenic soybean, and some issues linked to the rapid increase in the use of glyphosate. At the beginning a smaller amount of herbicides was used, but this amount increased from 2002, though not steadily. Nonetheless, the environmental and toxicological impacts of pesticides do not only depend on the amounts applied. They also depend on the conditions of use and the levels of toxicity and ecotoxicity. The levels of ecotoxicity seem to have somewhat decreased. The success of transgenic soybeans for farmers has led to a higher use of glyphosate as a replacement for other herbicides, which has in turn led to a decline in its effectiveness. However, the issue here is not only genetic engineering in itself, but rather the management and governance of this innovation. Finally, the prospects of transgenic soybean are addressed. Transgenic soybean with new traits should be placed on the market. The conclusion describes economic context of the development of the first transgenic crops.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Agbios (2007) GM Crop Database. Agbios, Ontario, Canada 2007.
Alexander C. (2006) Farmer decisions to adopt genetically modified crops. CAB Reviews: Perspectives in Agriculture, Veterinary Science, Nutrition and Natural Resources 1, N. 045, 9 p., DOI: 10.1079/PAVSNNR20061045.
ASA (American Soybean Association) (2001) Conservation Tillage Study, Saint-Louis (MO), Nov. 2001, 22 p.
Ash M. (2001) Soybeans: Background and Issues for Farm Legislation, USDA-ERS report No. OSC-0701-01, July 2001, 9 p.
Aspelin A., Grube A.H. (1999) Pesticides Industry Sales and Usage: 1996 and 1997 Market Estimates, USEPA, Washington, Nov. 1999.
Barnes R.L. (2000) Why the American Soybean Association supports transgenic soybeans, Pest Manage. Sci. 56, 580–583.
Benbrook C.M. (2004) Genetically Engineered Crops and Pesticide Use in the United States: The First Nine Years, BioTech InfoNet, Technical Paper N. 7, Sandpoint, Idaho (USA), 53 p.
Bonny S. (2003) Why are most Europeans opposed to GMOs? Factors explaining rejection in France and Europe, EJB The Electron. J. Biotechnol. 6, 20–41.
Bonny S. (2005a) The growth of transgenic crops in the USA: what it tells us, INRA Sciences Sociales, English version, 2005/01, No. 4–5.
Bonny S. (2005b) Quelle place des cultures transgéniques en protection des plantes? Aspects agro-économiques, in: Regnault-Roger C. (Ed.). Enjeux phytosanitaires pour l’agriculture et l’environnement, Paris, Éditions Tec et Doc Lavoisier, pp. 895–917.
Bonny S. (2007) How are opinions about GMOs changing over time? The case in the EU and the USA, in: Proceedings of the 16th International Plant Protection Congress, Glasgow (UK), BCPC, pp. 166–167.
Bonny S., Sausse C. (2004) Les cultures transgéniques permettent-elles de réduire l’usage des produits phytosanitaires? Considérations à partir du cas du soja tolérant au glyphosate, OCL Oléagineux, Corps gras, Lipides 11, 85–91.
Brookes G., Barfoot P. (2005) GM crops: the global economic and environmental impact – the first nine years 1996–2004, AgBioForum 8, 187–196.
Bullock D., Desquilbet M. (2002) The economics of non-GMO segregation and identity preservation, Food Policy 27, 81–97.
Bullock D., Nitsi E. (2001) Roundup ready soybean technology and farm production costs: measuring the incentive to adopt genetically modified seeds, Ame. Behav. Sci. 44, 1283–1301.
Canadian Biotechnology Secretariat (2005) International Public Opinion Research on Emerging Technologies, A Canada–US Public Opinion Research Study on Emerging Technologies.
Carpenter J., Gianessi L. (1999) Herbicide tolerant soybeans: why growers are adopting roundup ready varieties, AgBioForum 2, 65–72.
Carpenter J., Gianessi L. (2000) Agricultural Biotechnology: Benefits of Transgenic Soybeans, NCFAP, Washington, April 2000, 105 p.
Carpenter J., Gianessi L. (2001) Agricultural Biotechnology: Updated Benefit Estimates. NCFAP, Washington, Jan. 2001, 48 p.
Carpenter J., Gianessi L. (2002) Case study in benefits and risks of agricultural biotechnology: RR soybeans, in: Santaniello V., Evenson R.E., Zilberman D. (Eds.), Market Development for Genetically Modified Food, Wallingford, CABI Publishing, pp. 227–243.
Cerdeira A.L., Duke S.O. (2006) The current status and environmental impact of glyphosate resistant crop: a review, J. Environ. Qual. 35, 1633–1658.
CTIC (2004) National crop residue management survey, CTIC (Conservation Technology Information Center), West Lafayette (Indiana, USA) and USDA-NASS, Washington.
Devillers J., Farret R., Girardin P., Rivière J.L., Soulas G. (2005) Indicateurs pour évaluer les risques liés à l’utilisation des pesticides, Lavoisier, Tec&Doc, 278 p.
Donaldson D., Kiely T., Grube A. (2002) Pesticides Industry Sales and Usage: 1998 and 1999 Market Estimates, USEPA, Washington, 2002.
Duke S.O., Ragsdale N.N. (2005) (Eds.) Special Issue: Herbicide-resistant crops from biotechnology, Pest Manage. Sci. 61, 209–325.
Eurobarometer (2006) Europeans and biotechnology in 2005. Eurobarometer 64.3, Luxembourg, Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Brussels, CE, DG Research. July 2006, 88 p.
FAO (2004) The State Of Food And Agriculture 2003–2004, Agricultural Biotechnology Meeting the needs of the poor? Rome, FAO 2004.
FAPRI (2007) US and World Agricultural Outlook 2007, Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute, Iowa State University, Ames (Iowa, USA), 411 p, http://www. fapri.iastate.edu/outlook2007/.
Fernandez-Cornejo J., Caswell M. (2006) The first decade of genetically engineered crops in the United States, USDA ERS, Econ. Inform. Bull. (11), April 2006.
Fernandez-Cornejo J., McBride W.D. (2002) Adoption of Bioengineered Crops. Agricultural Economic Report, No. AER810, Economic Research Service, USDA, Washington, 2002, http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/aer810/ aer810.pdf.
Fernandez-Cornejo J., Hendricks C., Mishra A. (2005) Technology adoption and off-farm household income the case of herbicide-tolerant soybeans, J. Agr. Appl. Econ. 37, 549–563.
Foreman L., Livezey J. (2002) Characteristics and production costs of U.S. soybean farms. USDA-ERS Statistical Bulletin N SB974-4. April 2002.
Fraley R.T. (1994) Commercialization of genetically modified plants: progress towards the marketplace, in: Fessenden MacDonald J. (Ed.), Agricultural Biotechnology and the Public Good, NABC (National Agricultural Biotechnology Council) Report 6, Ithaca, New York, pp. 33–41.
Gardner J.G., Nelson C.H. (2007a) Genetically modified crops and labor savings in US crop production, Paper presented at the 2007 Southern Agricultural Economics Association Annual Meeting, 4–7 February 2007, Mobile, Alabama, 20 p.
Gardner J.C., Nelson G.C. (2007b) Assessing the environmental consequences of glyphosate-resistant weeds in the US, in: 11th International Conference on “Agricultural Biotechnologies: New Frontiers and Products” organized by the International Consortium on Agricultural Biotechnology Research (ICABR), Ravello – Scala, Italy, July 2007.
Gianessi L.P., Silvers C.S., Sankula S., Carpenter J.E. (2002) Plant Biotechnology Current and Potential Impact For Improving Pest Management In U.S. Agriculture: An Analysis of 40 Case Studies, NCFAP (National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy), Washington, 32 p.
Gomez-Barbero M., Rodriguez-Cerezo E. (2006) Economic Impact of Dominant GM Crops Worldwide: a Review, European Commission, DG Joint Research Centre, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies. Luxembourg, Office for Official Publications of the EC, 48 p.
Heap I. (2007) International survey of herbicide resistant weeds, Herbicide Resistance Action Committee, and Weed Sci. Soc. Am, http://www.weedscience.org.
Heimlich R.E. et al. (2000) Genetically Engineered Crops: Has Adoption Reduced Pesticide Use? Agricultural Outlook (USDA ERS), August 2000, 13–17.
Hinsch A. (2006) Soja de alto valor, Argentina perder el tren? in: 3er Congreso de Soja del Mercosur, Rosario (Argentina), 27–30 June 2006.
James C. (2007) Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops: 2006, ISAAA Briefs N 35. ISAAA (International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications), Ithaca, NY.
Kalaitzandonakes N.G. (2003) The economic and environmental impacts of agbiotech: A global perspective, Kluwer/Plenum, New York, 336 p.
Kiely T, Donaldson D, Grube A. (2004) Pesticides Industry Sales and Usage: 2000 and 2001 Market Estimates, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, May 2004.
Knezevic S.Z., Evans S.P., Mainz M. (2003) Yield penalty due to delayed weed control in corn and soybean, Crop Manage., http://www.plantmanagementnetwork.org/pub/cm/research/ 2003/delay/.
Kovach J., Petzoldt C., Degni J., Tette J. (1992) A Method to Measure the Environmental Impact of Pesticides, New York Agricultural Experiment Station, New York’s Food and Life Sciences Bulletin 139. Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 8 p.
Lemarié S. (2000) Analyse économique du développement des cultures à base d’organismes génétiquement modifiés aux Etats-Unis, Volet 1: Le développement des OGM Agronomiques, INRA-SERD, Grenoble, 42 p.
Marra M.C., Piggott N.E., Carlson G.A. (2004). The Net Benefits, Including Convenience, of Roundup Ready®; Soybeans: Results from a National Survey, NSF Center for Integrated Pest Management, Technical Bulletin 2004-3, Raleigh, NC, 40 p.
Marsch p., Llewellyn R., Powles S. (2006) Social Costs of Herbicide Resistance: The Case of Resistance to Glyphosate, Paper presented at the 50th Annual Conference of the Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, Sydney, NSW, Australia, 8–10 February 2006.
Monsanto (2003) Executive Presentation to Members of the Financial and investment Community, Spring 2003 investor meetings. 12 May 2003.
Monsanto (2006) 2006 Annual report, Saint Louis (Missouri, USA), 128 p.
Nelson G.C. (2001) (Ed.) Genetically Modified Organisms in Agriculture, Economics and Politics, Academic, London, 344 p.
Nelson G.C., Bullock D.S. (2003) Simulating a relative environmental effect of glyphosate-resistant soybeans, Ecol. Econ. 45, 189–202.
Owen M.D.K. (2007) Genetically modified crops: successes and problems in the Midwest USA, in: Proceedings of the 16th International Plant Protection Congress, Glasgow, 2007, BCPC, pp. 506–507.
Owen M.D.K., Zelaya I.A. (2005) Herbicide-resistant crops and weed resistance to herbicides, Pest Manage. Sci. 61, 301–311.
Sankula S., Marmon G., Blumenthal E. (2005) Biotechnology derived crops planted in 2004. Impacts on US agriculture, NCFAP (National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy), Washington, 101 p.
Sanvido O., Romeis J., Bigler F. (2007) Ecological impacts of genetically modified crops: ten years of field research and commercial cultivation, Adv. Biochem. Eng. Biotech. 107, 235–278.
Service R.F. (2007) A growing threat down on the farm, Science 316, 114–117.
Steiner J. (2006) Innovating for the Future: World Trends, Seed Traits and Crop Inputs, Presentation at Minnesota Crop Production Retailers, 5 Dec. 2006.
Tinland B. (2007) Monsanto and Renessen’s pipeline products, Presentation at EFSA (European Food Safety Autority) GMO scientific hearing with applicants, 21 March 2007.
UIUC (1999) Illinois Agronomy Handbook 1999–2000, University of Illinois, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, Urbana-Champaign, 245 p.
US GAO (2000) Information on prices of genetically modified seeds in the United States and Argentina, US General Accounting Office, Washington, 25 p.
USDA ERS (2007a) Adoption of Genetically Engineered Crops in the U.S. Data sets, USDA Economic Research Service, http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/BiotechCrops/, July 2007.
USDA ERS (2007b) Commodity Costs and Returns, USDA Economic Research Service, http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/ CostsAndReturns/.
USDA NASS (1991–2007) Agricultural Chemical Usage. 1990 to 2006 Field Crops Summary, Annual publication from USDA Economics, Statistics and Market Information System, Albert R. Mann Library, Cornell University, USA.
USDA NASS (1992–2007) Agricultural Prices, Annual publication from USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Washington DC, USA, April.
USDA NASS (2000–2007) Acreage. Crop Production Supplement, USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Washington, Annual publication, June.
Wesseler J.H.H. (2005) (Ed.) Environmental Costs and Benefits of Transgenic Crops, Springer, Dordrecht, 280 p.
Woodburn A.T. (2000) Glyphosate: production, pricing and use worldwide, Pest Manage. Sci. 56, 309–312.
Worldviews (2002) Worldviews 2002: American and European Public Opinion on Foreign Policy, Chicago Council on Foreign Relations, The German Marshall Fund of the US.
Acknowledgements
The author sincerely thanks all the persons interviewed for this work. This research work was supported in part by INRA (Action Incitative Programmée “OGM et environnement”) and by the French Ministère de la Recherche (Action Concertée Incitative “impact des OGM dans les agro-écosystèmes”).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer Science+Business Media B.V
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bonny, S. (2009). Genetically Modified Glyphosate-Tolerant Soybean in the USA: Adoption Factors, Impacts and Prospects - A Review. In: Lichtfouse, E., Navarrete, M., Debaeke, P., Véronique, S., Alberola, C. (eds) Sustainable Agriculture. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2666-8_17
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2666-8_17
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-90-481-2665-1
Online ISBN: 978-90-481-2666-8
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)