Bt cotton

Cotton, Contaminated?  
Looks at contamination from GM cotton in India

( 1.0 MB) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=402)

Economic Comparison of Transgenic and Nontransgenic Cotton Production Systems in Georgia, USA  
Questions the contribution of transgenics to revenue for cotton farmers in the USA.

(644 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=401)

India: Bt cotton devastated by secondary pests  
Two articles on how the mealy bug is devastating Bt cotton in India.

Farmyard truths and industry lies  
AP Coalition in Defence of Diversity responds to claims made by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India about the benefits of Bt cotton.

(306 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=397)

A Disaster in Search of Success - Bt Cotton in Global South  
A group of Indian farmer-filmmakers, all women, travel to Mali, South Africa and Indonesia to document the experiences of other farmers with cultivating Bt cotton. Available from IIED.

Cotton Concentration Report: An assessment of Monsanto's proposed acquisition of Delta & Pine Land   (766 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=394)

A Meta-Analysis of Effects of Bt Cotton and Maize on Nontarget Invertebrates   (141 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=395)

Performance of Bt cotton (MECH-162) under Integrated Pest Management in  

(46 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=392)

Impact of Bt cotton adoption on pesticide use by smallholders: A 2-year   (130 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=386)

Bt Cotton: The facts behind the hype  

False hopes, festering failures: Bt cotton in Andhra Pradesh 2005-2006   (735 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=384)

Can the Poor Help GM Crops? Technology, Representation & Cotton in the Makhathini Flats, South Africa   (256 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=376)

Tarnishing Silver Bullets: Bt Technology Adoption, Bounded Rationality and the Outbreak of Secondary Pest Infestations in China  
"Seven years after the initial commercialization of Bt cotton in China, we show that total pesticide expenditure for Bt cotton farmers in China is nearly equal to that of their conventional counterparts, about $101 per hectare. Bt farmers in 2004 on the average, have to spray pesticide 18.22 times, which are more than 3 times higher compared with 6 times pesticide spray in 1999. Detailed information on pesticide expenditures reveals that, though Bt farmers saved 46% Bollworm pesticide relative to non-Bt farmers, they spend 40% more on pesticides designed to kill an emerging secondary pest. These secondary pests (one example is Mirid) was rarely found in the field prior to the adoption of Bt cotton, presumably kept in check by bollworm populations and regular pesticide spraying. The extra expenditure needed to control secondary pests nearly offsets the savings on primary pesticide frequently cited in the current literature."

(200 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=374)

Ban Bt cotton - A letter to Andhra Pradesh's ag minister  

Farm-scale evaluation of the impacts of transgenic cotton on biodiversity, pesticide use, and yield   (660 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=365)

Local and Global Elites Join Hands: Development and Diffusion of Bt Cotton Technology in Gujarat  

In this paper, Shah explores how Bt cotton, advanaced as a solution to the problems generated by the green revolution technological paradigm in India, sustains and reinforces the hegemony of global and local elites. Page can also be found here.

The Story of Bt Cotton in India  
The report contains information gathered from diverse sources from 2001 till March 2005. This in the form of articles, press releases, reports of fields studies done by a number of agencies including the governments of those states where Bt cotton was cultivated these last three years; news appearing in the media and interventions in Parliament. It is available from Gene Campaign as a hard copy and as a CD for $20.

Report of a Fact Finding Team’s visit to Badwani district, Madhya Pradesh  
Report of an investigation into the wide-spread problems with wilt in Bt cotton fields in the area

Planting Bollgard cotton is illegal in Brazil  
Details legal situation of GM cotton in Brazil as of September 2005.

Changes in Cry1Ac Bt Transgenic Cotton in Response to Two Environmental Factors: Temperature and Insect Damage  
Study concludes that changes in temperature and insect damage to the plants have a significant effect on Bt cotton's ability to resist damage from insects.
(255 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=335)

Marketing of Bt Cotton in India – Aggressive, Unscrupulous and False….  
Investigates the tactics used by Monsanto's Indian subsidiary, Monsanto-Mahyco, and its sub-licensee Bt Cotton seed companies to promote Bt cotton among Indian farmers.

(531 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=334)

The effect of high temperature on the insecticidal properties of Bt Cotton  
Investigates whether high-temperatures may be a cause of Bt cotton's problems with resistance to bollworm in China.
(178 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=332)

Temporal and intra-plant variability of Cry1Ac expression in Bt-cotton and its influence on the survival of the cotton bollworm  
Study by India's Central Institute for Cotton Research demonstrating inability of Bt cotton hybrids to withstand attack from cotton bollworm.
(128 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=330)

Is there a role for Bt cotton in IPM for smallholders in Africa   (114 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=327)

The Limits of Cotton: White Gold Shows its Dark Side in Benin   (38 kb)

Cultivation of Bt Cotton - Pakistan's Experience   (403 kb)

Bt Cotton in KwaZulu Natal: Technological Triumph but Institutional Failure  
A look back at the original Reading University study that challenges its conclusions.
(204 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=321)

Pesticide productivity and transgenic cotton technology: The South African smallholder case   (391 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=315)

Costs of Bt cotton production in South Sulawesi province in 2001 season  

Bt cotton in South Africa: the case of the Makhathini farmers  
 This article summarises the results of five years of research undertaken by Biowatch South Africa on the socio-economic impact of Bt cotton on small-scale farmers in South Africa.

Bt Cotton in Andhra Pradesh - a three year assessment   ( 2.2 MB)

New lies, old truths  

 Resolution from Souther Encounters - an international consultation on Bt cotton, 14-15 April 2005, Hyderabad, India

Tanzania gov't looks to Bt cotton to expand cotton area, while country mired in surplus production  

Performance of Bt Cotton In Andhra Pradesh 2004- 2005  

US: Plant bugs increasing nuisance in cotton  
Pest managment for cotton becoming a bit of a mess in US. Due to widespread planting of Bt cotton, once secondary pests are now a serious problem, with farmers struggling to figure out how to deal with them.

No Bt Cotton, No Pests! : How cotton farmers are being fleeced  

The story of Bt Cotton in Andhra Pradesh: Erratic Processes and Results  
Provides results of three years of study into Bt cotton cultivation in Andhra Pradesh, India

(399 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=280)

Bt Cotton Vs. Non Pesticidal Management of Cotton – Findings of a study done by Centre for Sustainable Agriculture  
Study of Bt cotton cultivtion during the 2004-2005 season in Andhra Pradesh

(98 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=281)

Bt cotton growers in AP feel the heat: study  
Centre for Sustainable Agriculture study shows that Bt cotton growers in Andhra Pradesh, in 2004, incurred 690% higher cost in pest management as compared to those growing conventional cotton varieties with the help of bio-pesticides and natural control agents.

Indian Bt gene monoculture, potential time bomb  

Global agriculture and genetically modified cotton in Africa   (438 kb)

Biotechnology and the Political Ecology of Information in India  
Case study of Bt cotton in India that looks at how GM crops can contribute to deskilling.

(406 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=263)

The seeds of a bribery scandal in Indonesia  

GM Cotton: Corruption, Hype, Half-truths and Lies  

GM Cotton that People Forgot  

Food Health Bribery  
In-depth article on Monsanto's attempts to bring Bt cotton into Indonesia.

ISAAA Report On Bt Cotton In India - Success & Failure  

Production cotonnière africaine - Campagne 2004 - 2005  
Dagris, le groupe français qui contrôle la plupart des filières de coton de l'Afrique, souligne que les ravageurs ne posent pas de sérieux problèmes cetta année. Selon Dagris, "La pression parasitaire est demeurée faible. L'action des ravageurs ne devrait pas affecter la production, ni en quantité ni en qualité." Cela contredit le raport de le FAO qui estime que le coton Bt apporterait des importantes bénéfices au producteurs de la région.

Monsanto found guilty of offering bribes to facilitate Bt cotton in Indonesia  
Click on title link for various articles. Click on .pdf link below for the complete SEC complaint.

(30 kb)

Bruce Bond: High Cotton Winner  
This award winning US cotton farmer is not satisfied with Bt cotton and plans to plant more of his acreage to non-Bt varieties in the future. According to farmer Bruce Bond:

"Secondary pests — plant bugs and stink bugs — are eating our lunch. I probably have $90 an acre in insecticide costs on Bt cotton. I think that’s too much, especially when I pay $32 right up front. Next year, I’d like to bump the non-Bt cotton acreage up a bit. I planted my refuge cotton on the worst ground I have, and one 23-acre field of it was some of the best cotton I picked this year.”

L'Afrique doit-elle en prendre de la graine ?  

Genetic Basis for Variability of Cry1Ac Expression Among Commercial Transgenic Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) Cotton Cultivars in the United States  
Study shows that genetic background has a major effect on Cry1Ac expression in Bt cotton cultivars. It also provides a summary of studies pointing to limitations in Bt cotton's control of many lepidopteran pest.

(213 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=250)

Slide from presentation to meeting of the International Cotton Advisory Committee  
Slide features a chart comparing seed prices and pesticide sprays for Ugandan small cotton farmers versus farmers in South Africa and India growing Bt cotton

(52 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=249)

Cotton insect shifts documented in North Carolina  

Objections à la demande faite par Syngenta Afrique du Sud (2004)  

Influence of Pesticide Applications on Pest and Predatory Arthropods Associated with Transgenic Bt Cotton and Nontransgenic Cotton Plants  
"The use of Bt cotton did not lead to a reduction in total numbers of insecticide sprays in the course of 3 years because additional sprays were required against sucking pests."

(203 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=214)

Genetically Modified Cotton and Farmers' Health in China  

(90 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=215)

Genetically Engineered Crops and Pesticide Use in the United States: The First Nine Years   ( 2.8 MB) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=216)

Farmers protest in Warangal after Bt cotton fails again  

Paper presented at Kheti Virasat's meeting on Bt.Cotton at Bhatinda on 8-9 Feb.2003  

GMO Crops: A Cautionary Tale  
Article reports on the experiences of Bt cotton farmers in Indonesia

Farmers lash out at 'half truths'  
Farmers in Mississippi angered over boll weevil eradication programme that forces them to purchase Bt cotton and increases pesticide production costs. Farmers say that, despite the programme, their insect problems are getting worse.

Letter from Bob Phelps of the Gene Ethics Network on the Sydney University report 'A Snapshot of Roundup Ready Cotton inAustralia'  
The actual study is available in PDF below

( 1.1 MB)

Researchers employ genetic engineering: Cotton varieties  
Pakistan to prohibit foreign Bt cotton varieties, citing disease susceptibility and regulatory constraints. Country wil pursue development of its own Bt cotton.

Objections to the Application made by Syngenta South Africa in Respect of transgenic events for cotton to the National Department of Agriculture, South Africa   (341 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=143)

"Farmers experience with Bt cotton in China", Powerpoint presentation to the second Conference on Biotechnology for Asian Development, 7-8 April, New Delhi, India  

http://www.ris.org.in/SecCon/Program.htm

(270 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=138)

Biotechnology and Suicide in India  
This is an expanded version of a commentary published in Anthropology News, Vol 43 No. 5, May 2002.

(120 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=136)

New studies contradict FAO report and show that genetically engineered Bt cotton fails to benefit farmers  

De nouvelles études contredisent le rapport de la FAO et montrent que le coton génétiquement modifié BT ne bénéficie pas aux agriculteurs  

Nuevos estudios refutan el informe de la FAO y demuestran que el algodón Bt genéticamente modificado no beneficia a los agricultores  

Proliferación de semillas clandestinas OMG de algodón en la India  

Did Bt cotton fail AP again in 2003-2004? A season long study of Bt Cotton in Andhra Pradesh  
Sponsored by AP Coalition in Defence of Diversity, Deccan Development Society, and Permaculture Association of India

(see also www.ddsindia.com)

(228 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=124)

No Difference Between Bt, Non-Bt Cotton Output  
Indian Minister of Tourism "hits out hard at the unnecessary hype generated about the performance of Bt cotton"

Key findings from study of Bt cotton in Andhra Pradesh, 2003-2004  
This is a press release, The full report will be available shortly from this web page or the web site of the Deccan Development Society - www.ddsindia.com

Résultats pour l'année 2003-2004 du Programme GIPD - Mali (FAO)  
Le Gouvernement Malien a exécuté entre 1996 et 2003, un projet de formation participative en gestion intégrée de la production et des déprédateurs (GIPD) des cultures à travers les Champs Ecoles des producteurs ( CEP). Ce projet a été réalisé grâce à l’assistance de l’Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’Alimentation et l’Agriculture (FAO). Les 375 producteurs de coton qui ont participé au programme l'année dernière ont réussi à réduire l'utilisation de pesticide par 68%, tout en augmentant les rendements.

(207 kb)

Bt Cotton, Again  
Article detailing recent studies of Bt cotton performance in India.

http://www.frontlineonnet.com/fl2110/stories/20040521001408 100.htm

Broken Promises  
Summarises farmers experiences with Bt cotton in Indonesia and India

Bt Cotton Performance Reports from India, 2002  
The reports from the state governments where Bt cotton was planted in 2002 were carried out after news began to emerge of Bt cotton failing in farmers' fields. The reports from the various states back up these findings. The reports from Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat are given below in PDF as examples. All of the reports can be viewed by clicking on the above link.

(33 kb)
(14 kb)

Performance of Bollgard Cotton in 2003   (175 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=123)

Can GM-Technologies Help the Poor? The Impact of Bt Cotton in Makhathini Flats, KwaZulu-Natal  
World Development Vol. 31, No. 4, pp. 717–732, 2003

(150 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=67)

The Bt gene fails in India  
Seedling, July 2003

Sterile moths could spell end for 'pinkies'  
Describes some of the limitations with Bt cotton for pink bollworm control and describes some other methods used to control bollworms

An excerpt from the article "Farmer’s bane"  
This article reviews the failure of Bt cotton in Sulawesi, Indonesia

http://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file...

Part IV, "GM crops: A decade of failure"  
Part IV contains case studies of Bt cotton in Indonesia and India, with interviews of farmers that planted Bt cotton. For the full report see:
http://www.foei.org/media/gmdecade.html

(500 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=97)

Primer fallo judicial en contra de la introducción de cultivos transgénicos en Colombia  
Spanish

http://www.biodiversidadla.org/article/articleview/3866/1/1 5

Bt cotton fiasco: Turning a blind eye  
BioSpectrum

Bt-cotton productivity considerations from India and China  
Presentation to the Deutscher Tropentag Conference on International Agricultural Research for Development, Gottingen, October 8-10, 2003. It highlights some of the limitations with previous studies.
(241 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=311)

India: Scientists Find Bt Cotton Mixed With Other Varieties  
BharatTextile.com

Futile Harvest: An evaluation of India's first commercial Bt cotton crop   (128 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=109)

Agronomics and Sustainability of Transgenic Cotton in Argentina  
AgBioForum, Vol. 6, No. 1&2

GMOs, Pesticide Use, and Alternatives: Lessons from the U.S. Experience  
This paper, presented at the Conference on GMOs and Agriculture, Paris, France, provides an overview of US experience with Bt cotton.

Genetically Modified Crops and Sustainable Poverty Alleviation in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Assessment of Current Evidence  
Contains analysis of Bt cotton in South Africa

( 1.1 MB) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=99)

Bt cotton fiasco: Stepping onto a booby trap  

Bt Cotton and Small-scale Farmers in Makhathini – A Story of Debt, Dependency, and Dicey Economics  

Bt Cotton Benefits, Costs, and Impacts in China  
AgBioForum 5(4)
http://www.agbioforum.org/v5n4/v5n4a04-huang.htm

GMO brings hardship to S. Sulawesi, farmers claim  
Bt cotton fails in Indonesia

http://www.thejakartapost.com/yesterdaydetail.asp?fileid=20 020601.L03

Agricultural biotechnology: a Case Study of Bt Crops  
An excellent overview of the development of Bt crops and the problems with resistance developing. "The question that most scientists are asking is not whether insects will become resistant to Bt, but when this will happen and whether there is anything that can be done to delay the process that is now inevitable..."

(212 kb) (grain.org/btcotton/?id=98)