GM Crop Acreage Increases in 2002

GM Crop Acreage Increases in 2002

WASHINGTON--The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) branch of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its Prospective Plantings report on March 28, detailing the planned acreage for various U.S. crops in 2002.

NASS (www.usda.gov/nass) announced that corn growers intend to plant 79 million acres of corn for all purposes in 2002, an increase of 4 percent from 2001. Soybean producers will be planting 73 million acres, a decrease of 2 percent from last year. Wheat planting is estimated to cover 59 million acres this year, a 1-percent decrease from last year. And, cotton plantings are expected to cover 14.8 million acres, down 6 percent from last year.

In addition to reporting total expected acreage for various crops, as well as which states will be planting the majority of these crops, NASS reported on genetically modified (GM) crop planting. NASS conducts its annual March Agricultural Survey in all states, asking randomly selected farmers what they intend to plant during the upcoming season. In 2000, questions regarding biotechnology were added to the survey.

The acreage estimates for eleven states (representing 81 percent of all corn, 90 percent of all soybean, and 81 percent of all upland cotton planting) include increases in GM crop acreage in nearly all categories. The report indicates a nationwide increase of 6 percent in GM corn planting, 2 percent in upland cotton, and 6 percent in GM soybeans. Conventionally bred herbicide resistant varieties were excluded from this data, and only those insect-resistant varieties containing bacillus thuringiensis were included.