Most Spanish farmers do not use any active form of treatment for dealing with the pest. This is mainly because the larval damage is hidden, heavy infestations are unpredictable, checking the fields multiple times each summer takes time and skill, the difficulty of timing spraying and the perceived high costs of the treatment. Genetically modified insect resistant maize provides a new management tool for all corn producers to increase yields where ECB is a problem.

The average farm size in North East Spain is just 50 hectares, with maize only being grown on part of the area. On average, these small scale farmers received an increased income of €150 (per hectare) compared with growing conventional maize. Their enthusiastic uptake of the GM maize confirms that the benefits of this technology are not limited to large farmlands, in fact delivering pest control can benefit all scales of farming.

Graham Brookes, author of the report, said "Many people don’t realise that GM crops are being successfully grown in the EU. In this North Eastern region of Spain, over 20,000 hectares of Bt maize has been grown every year since 1998". This represents over 4% of the total Spanish maize crop, and it is estimated that this would rise to 36% if the Bt trait would be freely available in all major maize varieties.

Genetically modified maize has been successfully grown on a commercial basis in Spain for several years. A study of farmers’ experience of growing Bt maize in the Huesca region has recently been undertaken by Brookes West – a UK consultancy.

Some of the key conclusions from the report are summarised below:

• Spain is an important maize-growing country, accounting for approximately 11% of the total EU crop.

• In the 2001/2002 growing season, 20,000-25,000 hectares of insect resistant GM maize (Bt maize) was grown. This is 4-5% of the total Spanish maize crop. Growing on this scale has taken place since 1998, but further expansion has been restricted through a voluntary agreement by the seed supplier (Syngenta).

• There is no size barrier to the successful use of the technology: in Spain, Bt maize is being grown on farms of only 50 hectares on average.

• The Bt maize grown in Spain is sold through the usual channels for animal feed use. The supply chain has not seen a need for segregation, and normal commodity prices apply. Indeed, grain quality is perceived to be higher because of the lower levels of mycotoxins.

• Given the future availability of the Bt trait in all leading varieties and the dropping of voluntary seed supply restrictions, it is estimated that GM seed would account for 36% of all maize production in Spain; some 173,000 hectares in total.

• At this scale of use, a conservative estimate of the average improvement in yield (a range of 1.8 to 2.5%) suggests an increased crop of 88,000 to 125,000 tonnes. This would give the farmers an extra €11 – 15 million in income at current prices.

• The primary pest which is controlled in this crop is the European Corn Borer. Because of the difficulty of timing treatment accurately, Bt maize is more effective at reducing yield loss than insecticides used on conventional crops. For the Huesca region, in areas of high pest pressure, use of Bt maize gives an average yield increase of 15% where no insecticide was previously used, and 10% even where the conventional crop had been sprayed.

• There is a cost premium of €18-19 per hectare for the GM seed. This is more than offset by the increased yield and savings in spraying costs.

• In the Huesca region, the average income rose by nearly €150 per hectare of maize, representing an increase of 12.9% in the gross margin for the farmer.

• For farmers who do not normally spray to control pests, a yield increase of only 1.5% is necessary to cover the increased cost of seed. Even in areas of low to medium pest pressure, this is likely to be exceeded in a significant proportion of crop years.

• For such low infestation areas, the use of Bt maize acts as a form of insurance, offering increased certainty of consistently high yields. For this reason, some farmers choose to plant Bt maize even though the impact on profitability may be neutral when averaged over several years.

The full report can be accessed at http://www.europabio.org/pages/ne_gbgmcrops.asp