Plant Biotechnology in Pakistan Public Investments and Impacts on Pharmaceuticals and BT Cotton

Abstract

Pakistan, like other emerging nations, sees farmers weighing the pros and cons before adopting BT cotton. Given its benefits to Pakistani farmers, we anticipate similar advantages for small-scale cotton producers in many other developing countries. Another lesson from Pakistan underscores the importance of domestic biotechnology research. The concurrent development of BT cotton by government researchers and its introduction by foreign firms created a strong lobby in support of this technology, which was widely accepted by the government. Apart from BT cotton, no GM plant species have been licensed for commercial release in Pakistan since 1997. However, various GM plant species, including rice, maize, and soybeans, are now present and undergoing commercialization processes. By 2003, nearly 60% of cotton acreage in Pakistan was planted with BT cotton, adopted by over 5 million farmers. Adoption of BT cotton increased output per hectare by approximately 10% and reduced pesticide use by 35 kg (or roughly 60%), significantly boosting income for small farmers, as indicated by our yield and economic studies. Our data also show that reduced pesticide use correlates with fewer health issues among farmers. Most notably, our recent survey highlights the promising performance of GM rice during the pre-production phase. GM rice resistant to insects and diseases has the potential to reduce pesticide use per acre by 17 kg, or about 80%. Additionally, our survey indicates slightly higher yields from GM rice production. We conclude that Pakistan's adoption of plant biotechnology will greatly enhance agricultural output, offering valuable lessons for other developing nations.

Keywords: Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO), BT cotton, Pharmaceuticals

Citation

Adeel Asghar. Plant Biotechnology in Pakistan Public Investments and Impacts on Pharmaceuticals and BT Cotton. WebLog J Biotechnol Biomed Eng. wjbtbe.2026.i1205. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22842105