SYDNEY - The introduction of genetically modified cotton crops to Australia has cut the use of chemical pesticide by about half, the country's leading science organisation said yesterday.
Pesticide use had fallen by about 50 per cent where US-based Monsanto Co's Ingard GM was planted, compared with conventional cotton, the
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation said.
Ingard GM was introduced in 1996 to Australia, one of the world's largest cotton exporters and a key supplier to Asian markets.
Bollgard II, a new version of Monsanto GM cotton that will be commercially available in Australia this year, promises even less insecticide use, said the organisation's Plant Industry cotton breeder Greg Constable.
"Three years of field trials show Bollgard II [reduces] pesticide use by up to 75 per cent compared to conventional cotton. Furthermore, cotton fibre yield and quality in Bollgard II varieties is equivalent to that in conventional cotton varieties," he said.
Bollgard II was developed by inserting two insecticidal genes from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis into cotton, killing cotton's major insect pest Helicoverpa when it eats the crop.
Helicoverpa is the Australian equivalent of the worldwide scourge of cotton crops, the boll weevil.
General release of Bollgard II was approved by the Government last year and in 2003-04 it would comprise about 15 per cent of the total crop, Constable said.
By 2004-05, Bollgard II could supply 80 per cent of the cotton crop as Ingard is phased out of production to minimise the risk of developing resistance to the bacterium.
Use of Ingard was restricted to 30 per cent of Australia's cotton-growing area, or about 120,000ha in 2001-02, mainly for insect resistance management.
Use of Bolgard II is not capped and officials say it could lead to at least a doubling of Australia's GM crops.
Herald Feature: Genetic Engineering
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