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AUS – COTTON’S GM SUCCESS STORY
26 November 2007 Source: Cotton Australia
Source: http://www.cottonaustralia.com.au/
Cotton’s GM Success Story
The Australian cotton industry is pushing state governments to lift current bans on growing crops produced with biotechnology, despite the fact that cotton is exempt from the current moratoria.
“Cotton’s GM success story is based on the fact that biotechnology companies were prepared to invest in research to produce varieties to suit Australian conditions. State bans on GM crops sends the wrong message to global biotechnology companies about Australia’s willingness to embrace the technology and could jeopardise future R&D investment in biotechnology for the cotton industry,” Cotton Australia CEO Mr Adam Kay said.
A recent tour by an anti-GM campaigner has seen a number of unfounded, false claims made about GM cotton in an attempt to convince state governments they are unsafe.
“The fact is we’ve been successfully growing GM cotton commercially in Australia for over a decade, with no market access issues and not one environmental incident. On the contrary, biotechnology has assisted the cotton industry to reduce its environmental footprint by decreasing pesticide use by up to 90%,” Mr Kay said.
“The next generation in biotechnology for the cotton industry is looking to tackle the water issue, with trials currently underway to find cotton plants that either use less water or the same amount of water more efficiently.
“The exciting part is that Australia has been chosen to conduct these trials because our growers have shown they are progressive, responsive and willing to take up technology that helps improve the environment and cotton production.
“State Governments must lift the current bans so that agricultural industries can remain efficient and sustainable – further investment and access to biotechnology is vital to this success,” Mr Kay said.
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