Research Catalog

Title

The impact of genetically engineered crops on farm sustainability in the United States / Committee on the Impact of Biotechnology on Farm-Level Economics and Sustainability, Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources, Division on Earth and Life Studies, National Research Council of the National Academies.

Author

National Research Council (U.S.). Committee on the Impact of Biotechnology on Farm-Level Economics and Sustainability.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Additional Authors

• National Research Council (U.S.). Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources.
• National Research Council (U.S.). Division on Earth and Life Studies.

Description

xx, 250 p.; 23 cm.

Summary

"Since genetically engineered (GE) crops were introduced in 1996, their use in the United States has grown rapidly, accounting for 80-90 percent of soybean, corn, and cotton acreage in 2009. To date, crops with traits that provide resistance to some herbicides and to specific insect pests have benefited adopting farmers by reducing crop losses to insect damage, by increasing flexibility in time management, and by facilitating the use of more environmentally friendly pesticides and tillage practices. However, excessive reliance on a single technology combined with a lack of diverse farming practices could undermine the economic and environmental gains from these GE crops. Other challenges could hinder the application of the technology to a broader spectrum of crops and uses. Several reports from the National Research Council have addressed the effects of GE crops on the environment and on human health. However, The Impact of Genetically Engineered Crops on Farm Sustainability in the United States is the first comprehensive assessment of the environmental, economic, and social impacts of the GE-crop revolution on U.S. farms. It addresses how GE crops have affected U.S. farmers, both adopters and nonadopters of the technology, their incomes, agronomic practices, production decisions, environmental resources, and personal well-being. The book offers several new findings and four recommendations that could be useful to farmers, industry, science organizations, policy makers, and others in government agencies."--Publisher's description.

Subjects

• Crops > Genetic engineering > Economic aspects > United States
• Agricultural biotechnology > Economic aspects > United States

ISBN

• 0309147085
• 0309152933
• 9780309147088
• 9780309152938

LCCN

2010927922

Owning Institutions

Columbia University Libraries