New Benbrook Data Blow Away Claims of Pesticide Reduction Due to GM crops
Data presented at a conference by Dr Charles Benbrook analyze pesticide use on GM and non-GM equivalent crops over the first 16 years of use, from 1996 to 2011. The analysis is based on widely accepted USDA data.
July 4, 2012 | Source: GM Watch | by
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Data presented at a conference by Dr Charles Benbrook analyze pesticide use on GM and non-GM equivalent crops over the first 16 years of use, from 1996 to 2011. The analysis is based on widely accepted USDA data.
Crops considered are herbicide-tolerant corn, soy, and cotton; Bt corn varieties engineered to resist corn rootworm and European corn borer pests; and Bt cotton.
Benbrook’s new data challenge “conventional wisdom” on GM crops and pesticide use. Dozens of papers in peer-reviewed journals assert GM crops reduce pesticide use, either based on no data or proprietary surveys of “representative fields”. Scientists repeat the claim in professional meetings and policy venues and lack of independent analyses by government or university experts allows the claim to go unchallenged, despite growing evidence to the contrary.
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Implications of GM crop cultivation at large spatial scales
Presentation given in Bremen, Germany, June 14-15, 2012 By Charles Benbrook, PhD, Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources, Washington State University, Pullman, WA Summary by GMWatch
1. Increased herbicide use on GM RR soy compared with non-GM soy: *Use of glyphosate on GM RR soy acres INCREASED from 0.69 pounds per acre in 1996 to 1.56 in 2011. *Use of other herbicides on GM RR soy acres DECREASED from 0.20 pounds per acre in 1996 to 0.12 in 2011. *Use of all herbicides on GM RR soy acres INCREASED from 0.89 pounds per acre in 1996 to 1.68 in 2011. *Use of all herbicides on non-GM soy acres DECREASED from 1.19 pounds per acre in 1996 to 0.96 in 2011.
2. Non-sustainability of GM soy: The differential between herbicides used on GM RR soy and non-GM soy is growing, showing that GM RR soy is increasing the use of herbicides over time whereas non-GM soy is decreasing herbicide use. In 1996 GM RR soy needed 0.30 pounds per acre less herbicide than non-GM soy. But in 2011 GM RR soy needed 0.73 pounds per acre more herbicide than non-GM soy.