Brazilian soya and maize exporters gain markets

zoom

Non-GE soya. Brazil can capitalize on its GE-free status, report says.

Brazil's non-GE status has already gained the country market shares and premiums because of the increased demand for GE-free food.

With Europe's anticipated shift to non-GE animal feed, and the Asian food market's rising demand for GE free crops, Brazilian exporters can expect increased demand for their food products.

The Greenpeace report was launched as a delegation of European meat producers arrived in Brazil to secure non-GE supplies for the future. However, the report also comes at a time when Brazil might reconsider its non-GE status.

"Brazil has a great opportunity now to dominate a multimillion dollar market by exporting only non-GE soya, maize and meat," said Mariana Paoli of Greenpeace Brazil. "It would be contrary to good business sense to quit the game while being ahead. Brazil is the forerunner in a non-GE market that is booming."

Since the introduction of GE soya in the US, the volume of US soyabean exports to Europe has dropped from 9.2 million tonnes in 1996 to 6.8 million tonnes in 2000 while Brazilian non-GE soyabean exports to Europe have increased from 3.1 million tonnes to 6.3 million tonnes. US maize and Canadian canola/rapeseed have suffered even more dramatic market losses.

Some in Brazil believe that the country can grow both GE and non-GE varieties of crops, and allow producers to supply whichever their customers ask for. Experience in the US and Canada shows that such an approach is extremely expensive. Even companies that go to the expense of keeping commodities separate still risk that the segregation systems will go wrong.

Jean-François Fauconnier, Greenpeace market specialist said, "You can´t do both: GE crops contaminate conventional crops and handling systems and drive up the costs of production throughout the sector."

View the report (PDF version):

The advantages of non-genetically engineered corn and soya for the Brazilian market