Abstract
Genetically modified (GM) crops can help reduce agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In addition to possible decreases in production emissions, GM yield gains also mitigate land-use change and related emissions. Wider adoption of already-existing GM crops in Europe could result in a reduction equivalent to 7.5% of the total agricultural GHG emissions of Europe.
Highlights
To support our argument, we demonstrate the climate benefits that would occur through more widespread Genetically modified (GM) crop adoption in the European Union (EU)
Some of these imports could be reduced with the use of yield-increasing GM varieties in the EU, leading to lower global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
We find that growing GM crops in the EU could reduce GHG emissions by 33 million tons of CO2 equivalents per year (MtCO2e/ y), which is equivalent to 7.5% of the total agricultural GHG emissions of the EU in 2017
Summary
Modified (GM) crops can help reduce agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. While various GM traits have been developed, the most widely adopted ones globally are insect resistance (IR) and herbicide tolerance (HT) These traits help reduce crop damage from insect pests and weeds, respectively, increasing effective yields. Widespread GM crop adoption in the EU with increased yields would lead to higher EU exports, lower imports, and, decreases in production and landuse changes elsewhere. The EU imports over 15 million tons of maize annually from Ukraine, Russia, Brazil, and a few other countries Some of these imports could be reduced with the use of yield-increasing GM varieties in the EU, leading to lower global GHG emissions. COCs comprise a larger proportion (>84%) of the total potential avoided GHG emissions compared with PEMs, underlining the importance of considering land-use change effects when estimating the climate benefits
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