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First Bt Cotton Grown in Pakistan
By
Ijaz Ahmad Rao – Bahawalpur
Cotton is an important cash
crop for Pakistan known as “white gold”. It accounts for 8.2
percent of the value added in agriculture and about 3.2
percent to GDP; around two thirds of the country’s export
earnings are from the cotton made-up and textiles which adds
over $2.5 billion to the national economy; while hundreds of
ginning factories and textile mills in the country heavily
depends upon cotton.
Life of millions of farmers is
dependent on this crop, in addition to millions of people
employed along the entire cotton value chain, from weaving
to textile and garment exports The area under the
cultivation of cotton crops has been increased significantly
in the last 30 years - around 7.85 million acres in 2005-06
as compared to 7.2 million acres in 2002-03. Beside being
the world’s fourth-largest cotton producer and the third
largest exporter of raw cotton and a leading exporter of
yarn in the world our yield per acres ranks 13th in the
world; as a result Pakistan annually imports around 1.5-2.00
million bales of cotton to meet growing demand from local
textile mills; therefore it has become vital for Pakistan to
increase its yield per acre.
There are many reasons for low yields of cotton crop in
Pakistan - high price of agriculture inputs (seeds,
fertilizers, pesticides etc), higher intensity of insects
and pests attack, shortage of good quality and varieties of
seeds, deficiency of water for irrigation, lack of advance
technologies, awareness and agro-professionalism, and
adulterations in pesticides, fertilizers and seeds.
It is
unfortunate that there is no proper cotton crop insurance
system available in Pakistan, while government does not
provide any support or subsidy to cotton growers for inputs
- resulted in frustration and lack of motivation in cotton
growers. Farmers are facing with a number of risks till
marketing of their crops including unexpected factors like
inflation, high price of energy, unfair competition and
speculation in open market by big cotton buyers. Although,
government claims that they have excellent micro-economy
policy to improve the livelihood of farmers and elimination
of poverty in rural area through bank-loans offered to the
farmers, however, the interest rates are fairly high.
Agriculture biotechnology is helping today to provide people
with more and better crops, food and holds even greater
promise for the future. Green revolution farming methods are
coming to an end with declining yields due to environmental
and soil degradation, loss of seedling varieties and high
input costs. So, many farmers around the world are turning
to genetic engineered varieties (GE) to confront with new
challenges. Many Asian countries including China, India,
Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Pakistan and
Vietnam are giving high priority to plant biotechnology
research in the hope of addressing the pressing challenges
related to improving productivity, farmers livelihoods,
driving rural development, and meeting food security
demands. Many of these countries focus their biotechnology
research on food crops and non food crops and crops of high
commercial value in the hope of meeting increasing food
requirements and reducing use of pesticides and poverty
alleviation in rural area.
If we look at the Pakistan scenario, two major types of
pests are damaging our cotton crops – sucking and chewing;
to certain extent it is easier to control sucking pest by
strong pesticides but is very challenging to control chewing
pests - Bollworms known as “Sundies” – American, Army, Pink
and Spotted - cause major devastations in the cotton crop
fields; as a result of this, overall both quality of lint
and production of cotton have declined substantially.
Moreover, recent disaster resulting from the cotton leaf
curl virus (CLCV) spread in Punjab and Sindh pushed our
institutes like Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC),
National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering
(NIBGE) and Nuclear Institute of Agriculture and Biology (NIAB)
in Faisalabad, and National center of Excellence in
Molecular Biology (NCEMB) at Punjab University Lahore to
cope with such problems; significant amount of financial
resources and manpower have been committed by the Government
of Pakistan for developing genetically modified (GM) local
cotton varieties.
Pakistan has already surpassed the major obstacle on its way
to adapting to biotechnology by enacting the Biosafety Rules
in April 2005. These rules setup legal requirements for
import, export, transport, and handling of biological
agents, genetic engineering organisms or vectors, seeds,
crops and foods, besides setting conditions for the
researchers; seeds developers and companies. Usually it
takes two to three years to do proper assessment for any
Biotech crops before its commercialization. Whereas,
Pakistan Atomic energy Commission (PAEC) had sought special
permission in 1997 from the Ministry of Environment under
“Voluntary Code of Conduct for release of GMO into the
environment” prepared by NIBGE; and it conducted, checked
and analyzed many safety tests on various cotton varieties
which contain gene of genetically modified organism called
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), a bacterium that is deadly to
the “Sundies”.
In May 2005 PAEC provided 40,000.00 Kg basic seed of Bt
cotton (insect resistant) varieties “IR-FH-901”,
“IR-NIBGE-2”, “IR-CIM-448” and “IR-CIM-443”; which have been
grown over 8,000 acres of land in season 2005-06. Its
encouraging outcomes have surprised every one from seed
companies to the farmers who cultivated these varieties.
These early users of Bt cotton have been tightly screened
and evaluated by PAEC on the bases of their capacity to
follow Bio-safety rules.
Farmers, who cultivated these Bt cotton varieties at heart
of cotton growing regions in Punjab - Bahawalpur, Multan,
Muzaffer Garh and Karor Pakka; observed and evaluated
independently its resistance and susceptibility to different
pests including factors like abiotic stress and yield than
compared it with non Bt cotton varieties grown in the same
locations. A large number of farmers have visited these
fields, and become aware of the benefits of the locally
developed Bt cotton.
Although germination of these Bt cotton seed varieties vary
from 65 %, to 85 %, but mixing or impurities were less than
2 %. In the beginning overall attack of “Lashkari Sundi”
“American Sundi” and other bollworms remained low as
compared to previous years but attack of sucking pests like
Jassid, Whitefly, Thrips and other Aphid were high in both
Bt and non Bt cotton crops. No serious incidence of cotton
leaf curl virus disease was reported in Bt cotton varieties.
Heat stress in cotton crop was also recorded in different
region, however no stress was observed in Bt cotton
varieties. Army, Pink and Spotted bollworm were active from
July to October with peak infestation during September but
Army remained in the field after spray for limited time
period; IR-901, IR 448 and NIBGE 2 with minimum damage was
recorded as compare to non Bt cotton crops. It is worth
mentioning that infestation of American, Pink and Spotted
sundies remained significantly low throughout the season in
Bt varieties as compare to infestation in non Bt cotton
varieties. Maximum alive larvae of Army, pink and spotted
bollworm were recorded in fields of non Bt varieties around
7-8 per 15 plants while only larvae of Army bollworm were
recorded in IR- 448, IR 901 and NIBGE-1 around 3 – 4 larvae
in 15 plants. It is also important that newly hatched
Helicoverpa Armigera when eat leaves of the Bt cotton crops
died after few days; no larvae reached to pupal stage while
in non Bt it has developed into pupa. Significant number of
spray has decline in Bt cotton varieties; 4 – 5 applications
as compare to non Bt cotton crop 6 – 9; most of spray were
used to control sucking pests; however in chewing; pests
spray was required to control Lashkari sundi. Although Bt
cotton also provides significant control of targeted
bollworms but supplemental foliar insecticide sprays are
occasionally required to keep other bollworms from causing
excessive damage in Bt fields.
Bt cotton varieties yielded significantly more per acre as
compare to non Bt cotton varieties - an average 23-28 maund
(1 Maund = 40 Kg) per acres versus 17-20 maund to
traditional cotton varieties.
This translates into more than
30 percent increase in yield. It is noteworthy that in Bt
cotton crops average number of cotton Bolls per plant are
120 while average Boll weight is app. 1.75 grams including
seeds and number of plants per acre are as recommended by
the department of agriculture. The economical gain by using
Bt cotton per acre is more than Pak Rs. 3,000 at the market
sale price of Rs. 1100/ Maund. In Pakistan average cotton
grower has 10 acres of land; increase in such small income
per acre would improve his quality of life. It is expected
that cotton growers should have Bt seeds of the above
varieties for at least 75,000 acres of land in year 2006-07.
Besides cotton lint; tons of edible oil is extracted from
cottonseed in addition to that over two million tons of oil
seedcake is also produced as feed for livestock and poultry.
Series of safety studies have been carried out at NIBGE
including health risk assessment and environmental concerns;
it conducted that Bt cotton leaves/feed has no health
hazards and side effects on human, animals and it safe for
environment. These studies created a positive consciousness
and confidence among the Pakistani scientist and people
about Bt cotton. In February 2006, World Trade Organization
ruling against European Union; directs the EU to end its
defacto moratorium on biotech crops and GM food. EU had an
effective ban on biotech foods for six years beginning in
1998 while ended its moratorium in 2004; it began allowing
imports of GM products on a case-by-case basis, individual.
EU grows less than 1% of the world's gene-modified crops and
has approved more than 30 GM food and animal products since
1994. Washington has said it will continue with its WTO case
until it is convinced that all applications for approval are
being decided on scientific rather than political grounds;
the ruling supports a 15-year study funded by the European
Union itself found that biotech plants and products have not
“shown any new risks to human health or the environment” and
concluded that these foods are in fact safer than
conventional foods- this curb on imports of GM foods should
bring great benefits to farmers and rural areas worldwide.
Today, all major cotton producing countries are benefiting
from the cultivation of Bt Cotton. In the last season 54
percent of cotton crops grown in USA, 76 percent in China
and 80 percent in Australia were with “single” or “double”
Bt gene technology. India, the world’s third-largest
cotton-grower has cultivated 1.36 million acres of Bt cotton
crops. It is expected that within two years more than half
the world’s cotton may be grown from genetically modified
crops.
Pakistan also realizes the significance of Bt Cotton, and
the top political leadership including the Prime Minister
Shaukat Aziz himself has said to a delegation of farmers
that government would allow farmers to grow Bt cotton soon,
which confirms government’s policy of being open to
genetically modified crops in the near future. Other
ministers have also spoken in favor of adopting the Bt
Cotton.
Crop reviews carried out by various independent sources
illustrate that unrecorded sowing of new Bt cotton varieties
also played its role in increasing cotton productivity, with
unofficial estimates suggesting 3 to 5 percent of the area
in Punjab and 10 to 15 percent of the area in Sindh may have
been planted in transgenic cotton.
We shall discuss the unapproved varieties of Bt Cotton
separately because these exotic varieties are throwing
different and some very serious challenges to the cotton
crop in Pakistan. Nevertheless, the indigenously developed
IR-cotton varieties with Bt gene have proven resistance to
cotton’s major bollworms, and have a potential to reduce the
number of pesticide sprays and will be friendly to
environmental. It will increase yield per acre and reduce
cost of production. However, few issues related to seed
quality have been reported, which have no link with Bt
technology and are germplasm specific. These problems must
be addressed in the new version of Bt varieties like size of
bolls, maturity period etc.
Biotechnology offers tremendous benefits to the agriculture
in Pakistan. But in order to benefit from its true
potential, government and all key stakeholders including
farmers, seed companies, R & D institutes, seed dealers and
traders involved in commercial activity related to seed will
have to act responsibly and ethically. If we choose to
ignore regulatory frameworks that govern the chain of
activity, and international agreements on biosafety that
Pakistan is signatory to, to make quick bucks or in an
attempt to provide a speedy access of technology to the
farmers, we shall end up losing the benefits from the
technology in the long run by undermining it. We have to
ensure effective, stringent, and transparent enforcement of
Biosafety Rules 2005, Seed Act 1976, and Punjab Cotton
Control Ordinance, to encourage the introduction of
technology through legal means with its complete package of
benefits.
Farmers! Please be advised that…
Select only approved Bt Cotton varieties by the Government
of Pakistan, and avoid pirated Bt cotton varieties or fake
bands under name of Bt cotton seeds available in the market.
These varieties could potentially serious damage crops, our
health and environment. The uncontrolled release of
genetically engineered varieties might irreversibly damage
our cotton crop, just like “Banana Bunchy virus” from
untested and non approved variety of banana from Australia
has done in Sindh. These exotic and unapproved Bt cotton
varieties are invariably susceptible to Jassid attack and
are very vulnerable to CLCV. In year 2002 “Burewala visrus”
which resulted in huge losses to the cotton crop in the
country, was due to the introduction of a foreign untested
variety that was not suitable to our soil and climate.
Bt seeds are highly dependent on agro climatic conditions,
genotype of the variety and management of crop. In some
areas, certain Bt varieties may be inappropriate for local
growing conditions and may fail to produce satisfactory
results. For example under high night temperatures and under
hot dry conditions, bolls may drop off the plants. Therefore
use only those approved Bt cottonseeds varieties; which are
tested for your local agro-climatic conditions.
Bt varieties provides protection only against certain
pests (sundies) such as, American sundie, Pink and Spotted
sundies; but not against Army or Lashkari sundi; you have to
spray if you find pests which cannot be controlled other
wise you will lose your crops and money.
Right dose of Bt toxin “Cry-protein” in very crucial in
each Bt seed; if we keep growing the same Bt seed over time;
the right amount of Bt toxin will reduce and pests will
develop resistance to Bt toxin – so it will harm our
agriculture, may be health, environment and undermine the
emerging technology.
So far, no Bt cotton developer has claimed that Bt
varieties would increase yield due to presence of
genetically modified organism; however, the increase in
yield can be achieved since the crop is protected from the
damages caused by pests.
Don’t be disheartened from the original technology, as the
half-baked technology in your access does not represent the
true benefits of Bt Cotton.
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