I. Current Situation and Development Trend of the
World’s Agricultural Biotechnology Industry
(1)
Growing importance of biotechnology application in agriculture
With the advancement in medicine and technology, people are enjoying longer
lives while the population continues to increase. How to resolve the food supply
problem so that man does not have to suffer from famine and hunger has already
become a major challenge people around the globe are trying to overcome. During
the previous century, agriculture’s green revolution has made a significant
contribution to this problem, yet of the 6 billion people in the world today;
800 million are still in the state of malnutrition. Moreover, predictions
forecast that by the year 2050, the world’s population will have increased to
over 10 billion people. Due to man’s need for living and
activity space, it will be even harder in the future to expand farming
land to increase food supply. The only way to resolve this problem is to rely on
enhancing the production methods of breeding, testing, farming, disease
prevention, and nutrition so that plants and animals that originally could not
be grown or difficult to raise in certain areas can now be cultivated and grown.
Furthermore, by boosting photosynthesis, increasing the efficient use of
nutrition as well as enhancing our ability to ward off disease and adversity can
help achieve the goal of increased productivity and improved quality. However,
the long-term use of chemical fertilizer and pesticides in traditional
agriculture has led to the worsening of soil and water conditions. The waste
created by the farming industry and deterioration of the ozone layer has
seriously affected the quality of living. In spite of this, the swift
development in biotechnology in recent years not only has provided several
solutions to these problems, but has also given people many good things to look
forward to as it continues to progress. As such, the importance of applying
biotechnology in agriculture is steadily growing.
The application of agricultural biotechnology is currently under parallel
development. On one hand it is being widely applied with traditional breeding,
testing, farming, disease prevention, fertilizers, and pesticides, and has
significantly improved production volume and the quality of traditional
agriculture. On the other hand, the application of new biotechnology has allowed
agriculture to collaborate with medicine, food, and environmental protection
industries, expanding whole new arenas for agricultural activities and creating
new industries in the process. The economic value created by these new
technology and applications is growing rapidly and with unlimited potential.
(2)
Development trend of the worldwide agricultural biotechnology industry
1.
Fast growth in R&D and commercial applications of genetically modified organisms
Generically modified
organisms (GMO) is the most important example of biotechnology application in
agriculture. Since the commercialization of genetically modified crops in 1996,
its growth has taken off at a very rapid pace. According to statistics, the
world’s total area used for farming has already reached 125 million acres. Of
the staple crops grown, soy beans, corn, and cotton have the highest economical
value. Generically modified strands of soy bean, corn, and cotton account for
46%, 7%, and 20% of the world''s total farming area today, respectively.
Currently, the purpose for generic modification is still to help farmers lower
their costs. The main generic fe