GM technology turns 25

Adjusted ISAAA infographics from https://www.isaaa.org/resources/infographics

As we enter a new decade, new technologies such as gene editing are brought to the market and about to transform agriculture and food production. Yet, I believe it is important to look back and see how many countries currently grow GM crops since the first Bt cotton was planted in 1996.  

This an interesting updated ISAAA map showing where biotech crops are planted, led by the top five countries USA, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, and India. 

Noteworthy is the planting of Bt cotton in Malawi, Ethiopia, and Nigeria for the first time in 2019. Kenya also announced the commercialization of biotech cotton at the end of 2019, with plantings that started in 2020. Spain and Portugal remain the only countries planting biotech maize in Europe.