Following on from gene-wash part 1, I've at last finished with part 2.

Biotech industry mouthpiece, the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) published a report on the 18 January making a number of claims about the increase in uptake of genetically engineered crops worldwide. [ISAAA]

The report claims:
- total area of approved GM crops in 2006 was 102 million hectares in 22 countries — a 13 per cent rise on the previous year.
- over 90 per cent of those growing GM crops worldwide — around 9.3 million farmers — are small, resource-poor farmers in developing countries.
- about 40 per cent of GM crops were grown in developing countries, which showed the biggest rise in growing area — 21 per cent compared to nine per cent in industrialised countries.
- India had the largest proportional increase: 192 per cent, an increase from 1.3 million hectares in 2005 to 3.8 million hectares in 2006.
- South Africa was second with an increase of 180 per cent from 0.5 million hectares in 2005 to 1.4 million hectares in 2006.

The ISAAA "Brief 35" is peppered with upbeat phrases: "global biotech crop area continued to soar", "increased more than sixty-fold", "historical landmark", "fastest adopted crop technology in recent history", "impressive gain" etc etc.

My favourite: "unprecedented high adoption rate is testimony to the trust and confidence of millions of small and large farmers in crop biotechnology in both industrial and developing countries."

Cough. Cough. No mention of the Indian farmers burning down the GM test plots that could potentially contaminate their rice fields? Or any of the numerous applications to grow GM crops being opposed by farmers, consumers and some governments around the world then?

And this is the PR machine in overdrive: "The continuing rapid adoption of biotech crops reflects the substantial and consistent improvements in productivity, the environment, health, economics, and social benefits realized by both large and small farmers, consumers and society in both industrial and developing countries."

South Africa is hyped up as having a massive increase in biotech crops from 500 000 hectares in 2005 to 1.4 million hectares in 2006. But according to a press release from Monsanto three months earlier, the 2006 area was a much more modest 609 000 ha. As Mariam Mayet of the African Centre for Biosafety points out, it would mean an additional 800 000 ha planted in the space of three months if ISAAA figures were to be believed. [ISIS]

Greenpeace pre-empted the publication of the ISAAA report with it's "10 years of continuing rejection" report on the global status of genetically engineered crops.

"There is irrefutable evidence that governments, farmers and consumers throughout the world recognise that GE is unreliable, unviable or downright dangerous," said Jeremy Tager, campaigner for Greenpeace International, "Market reaction to the recent rice contamination scandal was of near epidemic proportions; some countries are banning GE altogether. Romania, for instance, which had 85,000 hectares planted with GE soy in 2005, will drop to zero this year, in keeping with the new government policy banning the cultivation of GE soy."

Biowatch South Africa has also come out against the report in a press release published on 24 Jan where they highlight that the regulatory authority for GM applications in SA last year rejected an application for experiments with GM sorghum - because they feared contamination of local sorghum varieties.

It is clear from the brief that developing countries are being aggressively targeted and no doubt the ISAAA Brief 35 will land on numerous government officials desks and be touted as "proof" that genetically engineered bio-crops is the miracle drug the developing world needs.

We can only hope that civil society interventions by Safeage, African Centre for Biosafety, Biowatch South Africa, Earthlife Africa and others continue to highlight the gene-spin and prevent biotech multinationals getting GM applications passed through SA's GM review panel.