The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) reports that the world’s hectarage of biotech crops increased 19.4% to 125 million hectares in 2008. Cropnosis estimates that the market value (based on the sale price of the seed and technology fees) of biotech crops grew 8.7% in 2008 to $7.5 billion to account for 14% of the crop protection market. The world’s top producers of biotech crops are the US, Argentina, Brazil, India and Canada, with 62.5 million hectares, 21.0 million hectares, 15.8 million hectares, 7.6 million hectares and 7.6 million hectares of biotech crops, respectively. For the first time in 2008, Egypt, Burkina Faso, Bolivia, Brazil and Australia planted previously commercialized biotech crops, bringing the number of countries that have planted commercialized biotech crops to 25. Occupying 53% of biotech crop area (measured in hectares) last year was soybean. Maize, cotton and canola occupied 30%, 12% and 5% of biotech crop area. Herbicide tolerance was the most common trait, making up 63% of the global biotech crop area, as measured in hectares. Stacked double and triple trait crops occupied 22% and insect-resistant crops occupied 15%. The fastest-growing trait group was stacked trait products, with a 25% rise in occupied area.

Source: ISAAA