SPAIN IN BIG BIOTECH LEAGUE

AN 80% INCREASE in plantings of Bt maize has propelled Spain into the ranks of “biotech mega countries”, a new report says.

The country now grows more than 50,000ha (123,550 acres), according to figures released by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications.

But it remains the only EU country to plant a significant area of biotech crops, and far behind world-leading USA. Spain grows just 58,000ha (143,318 acres) compared with 47.6m ha (117.6m acres) in the USA.