Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture

Autores
Rotolo, Gloria Claudia; Francis, C.A.; Craviotto, Roque Mario; Viglia, S.; Pereyra, A.; Ulgiati, Sergio
Año de publicación
2015
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
Seeds of major crop cultivars provide a vital genetic and cultural link from one human generation to the next. Information embodied in seed is essential to continuity of food production, adaptation to changing climate, and evolution of human society. Introduction of transgenic (GMO) technologies simplifies management, appears profitable for seed companies and farmers, and promotes efficient industrialization of agriculture, although there is ongoing debate about potential of GMO varieties to increase genetic yield potential. Although short-term profits are one measure of success, there are other methods to evaluate long-term sustainability that are not accounted for in the market place. Emergy analysis accounts for biophysical, economic, environmental and information costs in seed production. It was used to calculate resource demand of GMO seed development and production for sale to farmers and to explore the direct and indirect environmental costs for storing new information. This includes initial transformation through testing to commercial seed production, and emphasizes environmental accounting. Maize (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) seed production in Argentina are used to evaluate the GMO breeding strategy. We used our calculations for conventional hybrids and varieties as well as emergy evaluation of crop production from literature as references. Analysis of the GMO process was divided into a) identification and isolation of a desired gene and transfer into another genome; b) transfer of the chosen trait into a selected commercial line of maize or variety of soybean; and c) trials for adaptation and seed multiplication to obtain commercial products for sale to farmers. Comparable emergy used for conventional hybrids and varieties comes from steps b) and c). Results from step c) showed a low reliance of the GMO process on renewable resources (8%–12%); a lower or similar efficiency in converting input resources into the desired output compared to non-GMO crop production from other studies and our estimates from conventional seed production; and a high contribution from services (indirect labor, around 70% of total emergy). The resource investments for using, extracting and transforming available information of present GMO strategies are not commensurate with achieved results, and may increase due to unanticipated ecosystem reactions over the long term due to a continuous rebound effect.
EEA Oliveros
Fil: Rotolo, Gloria Claudia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Oliveros; Argentina
Fil: Francis, C.A. University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Department of Agronomy and Horticulture; Estados Unidos. Norwegian University of Life Sciences. Department of Plant Science; Noruega.
Fil: Craviotto, Roque Mario. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Oliveros; Argentina
Fil: Viglia, S. Parthenope University. Department of Science for the Environmental; Italia
Fil: Pereyra, A. Criadero de Semillas ACA CL; Argentina
Fil: Ulgiati, S. Parthenope University. Department of Science for the Environmental; Italia
Fuente
Ecological Informatics 26, Part 1 : 35-49. (March 2015)
Materia
Agricultura
Innovación
Organismos Modificados Genéticamente
Cultivos
Medio Ambiente
Agriculture
Innovation
Genetically Modified Organisms
Crops
Environment
GMO
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso restringido
Condiciones de uso
Repositorio
INTA Digital (INTA)
Institución
Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
OAI Identificador
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network_name_str INTA Digital (INTA)
spelling Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agricultureRotolo, Gloria ClaudiaFrancis, C.A.Craviotto, Roque MarioViglia, S.Pereyra, A.Ulgiati, SergioAgriculturaInnovaciónOrganismos Modificados GenéticamenteCultivosMedio AmbienteAgricultureInnovationGenetically Modified OrganismsCropsEnvironmentGMOSeeds of major crop cultivars provide a vital genetic and cultural link from one human generation to the next. Information embodied in seed is essential to continuity of food production, adaptation to changing climate, and evolution of human society. Introduction of transgenic (GMO) technologies simplifies management, appears profitable for seed companies and farmers, and promotes efficient industrialization of agriculture, although there is ongoing debate about potential of GMO varieties to increase genetic yield potential. Although short-term profits are one measure of success, there are other methods to evaluate long-term sustainability that are not accounted for in the market place. Emergy analysis accounts for biophysical, economic, environmental and information costs in seed production. It was used to calculate resource demand of GMO seed development and production for sale to farmers and to explore the direct and indirect environmental costs for storing new information. This includes initial transformation through testing to commercial seed production, and emphasizes environmental accounting. Maize (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) seed production in Argentina are used to evaluate the GMO breeding strategy. We used our calculations for conventional hybrids and varieties as well as emergy evaluation of crop production from literature as references. Analysis of the GMO process was divided into a) identification and isolation of a desired gene and transfer into another genome; b) transfer of the chosen trait into a selected commercial line of maize or variety of soybean; and c) trials for adaptation and seed multiplication to obtain commercial products for sale to farmers. Comparable emergy used for conventional hybrids and varieties comes from steps b) and c). Results from step c) showed a low reliance of the GMO process on renewable resources (8%–12%); a lower or similar efficiency in converting input resources into the desired output compared to non-GMO crop production from other studies and our estimates from conventional seed production; and a high contribution from services (indirect labor, around 70% of total emergy). The resource investments for using, extracting and transforming available information of present GMO strategies are not commensurate with achieved results, and may increase due to unanticipated ecosystem reactions over the long term due to a continuous rebound effect.EEA OliverosFil: Rotolo, Gloria Claudia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Oliveros; ArgentinaFil: Francis, C.A. University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Department of Agronomy and Horticulture; Estados Unidos. Norwegian University of Life Sciences. Department of Plant Science; Noruega.Fil: Craviotto, Roque Mario. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Oliveros; ArgentinaFil: Viglia, S. Parthenope University. Department of Science for the Environmental; ItaliaFil: Pereyra, A. Criadero de Semillas ACA CL; ArgentinaFil: Ulgiati, S. Parthenope University. Department of Science for the Environmental; Italia2018-05-29T14:32:06Z2018-05-29T14:32:06Z2015-03info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S157495411400048Xhttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/25071574-9541https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2014.05.002Ecological Informatics 26, Part 1 : 35-49. (March 2015)reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariaenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess2025-09-29T13:44:19Zoai:localhost:20.500.12123/2507instacron:INTAInstitucionalhttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://repositorio.inta.gob.ar/oai/requesttripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:l2025-09-29 13:44:19.869INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuariafalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
title Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
spellingShingle Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
Rotolo, Gloria Claudia
Agricultura
Innovación
Organismos Modificados Genéticamente
Cultivos
Medio Ambiente
Agriculture
Innovation
Genetically Modified Organisms
Crops
Environment
GMO
title_short Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
title_full Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
title_fullStr Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
title_full_unstemmed Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
title_sort Time to re-think the GMO revolution in agriculture
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Rotolo, Gloria Claudia
Francis, C.A.
Craviotto, Roque Mario
Viglia, S.
Pereyra, A.
Ulgiati, Sergio
author Rotolo, Gloria Claudia
author_facet Rotolo, Gloria Claudia
Francis, C.A.
Craviotto, Roque Mario
Viglia, S.
Pereyra, A.
Ulgiati, Sergio
author_role author
author2 Francis, C.A.
Craviotto, Roque Mario
Viglia, S.
Pereyra, A.
Ulgiati, Sergio
author2_role author
author
author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Agricultura
Innovación
Organismos Modificados Genéticamente
Cultivos
Medio Ambiente
Agriculture
Innovation
Genetically Modified Organisms
Crops
Environment
GMO
topic Agricultura
Innovación
Organismos Modificados Genéticamente
Cultivos
Medio Ambiente
Agriculture
Innovation
Genetically Modified Organisms
Crops
Environment
GMO
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv Seeds of major crop cultivars provide a vital genetic and cultural link from one human generation to the next. Information embodied in seed is essential to continuity of food production, adaptation to changing climate, and evolution of human society. Introduction of transgenic (GMO) technologies simplifies management, appears profitable for seed companies and farmers, and promotes efficient industrialization of agriculture, although there is ongoing debate about potential of GMO varieties to increase genetic yield potential. Although short-term profits are one measure of success, there are other methods to evaluate long-term sustainability that are not accounted for in the market place. Emergy analysis accounts for biophysical, economic, environmental and information costs in seed production. It was used to calculate resource demand of GMO seed development and production for sale to farmers and to explore the direct and indirect environmental costs for storing new information. This includes initial transformation through testing to commercial seed production, and emphasizes environmental accounting. Maize (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) seed production in Argentina are used to evaluate the GMO breeding strategy. We used our calculations for conventional hybrids and varieties as well as emergy evaluation of crop production from literature as references. Analysis of the GMO process was divided into a) identification and isolation of a desired gene and transfer into another genome; b) transfer of the chosen trait into a selected commercial line of maize or variety of soybean; and c) trials for adaptation and seed multiplication to obtain commercial products for sale to farmers. Comparable emergy used for conventional hybrids and varieties comes from steps b) and c). Results from step c) showed a low reliance of the GMO process on renewable resources (8%–12%); a lower or similar efficiency in converting input resources into the desired output compared to non-GMO crop production from other studies and our estimates from conventional seed production; and a high contribution from services (indirect labor, around 70% of total emergy). The resource investments for using, extracting and transforming available information of present GMO strategies are not commensurate with achieved results, and may increase due to unanticipated ecosystem reactions over the long term due to a continuous rebound effect.
EEA Oliveros
Fil: Rotolo, Gloria Claudia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Oliveros; Argentina
Fil: Francis, C.A. University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Department of Agronomy and Horticulture; Estados Unidos. Norwegian University of Life Sciences. Department of Plant Science; Noruega.
Fil: Craviotto, Roque Mario. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Oliveros; Argentina
Fil: Viglia, S. Parthenope University. Department of Science for the Environmental; Italia
Fil: Pereyra, A. Criadero de Semillas ACA CL; Argentina
Fil: Ulgiati, S. Parthenope University. Department of Science for the Environmental; Italia
description Seeds of major crop cultivars provide a vital genetic and cultural link from one human generation to the next. Information embodied in seed is essential to continuity of food production, adaptation to changing climate, and evolution of human society. Introduction of transgenic (GMO) technologies simplifies management, appears profitable for seed companies and farmers, and promotes efficient industrialization of agriculture, although there is ongoing debate about potential of GMO varieties to increase genetic yield potential. Although short-term profits are one measure of success, there are other methods to evaluate long-term sustainability that are not accounted for in the market place. Emergy analysis accounts for biophysical, economic, environmental and information costs in seed production. It was used to calculate resource demand of GMO seed development and production for sale to farmers and to explore the direct and indirect environmental costs for storing new information. This includes initial transformation through testing to commercial seed production, and emphasizes environmental accounting. Maize (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) seed production in Argentina are used to evaluate the GMO breeding strategy. We used our calculations for conventional hybrids and varieties as well as emergy evaluation of crop production from literature as references. Analysis of the GMO process was divided into a) identification and isolation of a desired gene and transfer into another genome; b) transfer of the chosen trait into a selected commercial line of maize or variety of soybean; and c) trials for adaptation and seed multiplication to obtain commercial products for sale to farmers. Comparable emergy used for conventional hybrids and varieties comes from steps b) and c). Results from step c) showed a low reliance of the GMO process on renewable resources (8%–12%); a lower or similar efficiency in converting input resources into the desired output compared to non-GMO crop production from other studies and our estimates from conventional seed production; and a high contribution from services (indirect labor, around 70% of total emergy). The resource investments for using, extracting and transforming available information of present GMO strategies are not commensurate with achieved results, and may increase due to unanticipated ecosystem reactions over the long term due to a continuous rebound effect.
publishDate 2015
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2015-03
2018-05-29T14:32:06Z
2018-05-29T14:32:06Z
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dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S157495411400048X
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/2507
1574-9541
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2014.05.002
url https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S157495411400048X
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/2507
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2014.05.002
identifier_str_mv 1574-9541
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dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess
eu_rights_str_mv restrictedAccess
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv Ecological Informatics 26, Part 1 : 35-49. (March 2015)
reponame:INTA Digital (INTA)
instname:Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
reponame_str INTA Digital (INTA)
collection INTA Digital (INTA)
instname_str Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.name.fl_str_mv INTA Digital (INTA) - Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria
repository.mail.fl_str_mv tripaldi.nicolas@inta.gob.ar
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