…“I’ve had to do six insecticide treatments so far and there’s probably two more to go,” Gnoumou said. “But it’s looking good.”
The West African nation decided in April to halt the production of genetically modified cotton because the short fiber was hurting its reputation and cutting revenue… the country’s three cotton companies and the producers’ association told farmers to sow only conventional seeds…
That left 350,000 cotton growers worried they’d face a drop in income. Conventional cotton is more vulnerable to parasites… forcing farmers to buy more pesticides and in some cases expand their acreage, according to Wilfried Yameogo, managing director of state-controlled Sofitex…
…“With GM cotton, I knew the yield I would get,” [Gnoumou] said. “With conventional cotton, you don’t know what will happen.”
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“When you know the advantages and the ease of growing GM cotton, the return to conventional cotton is very hard,” Sofitex’s Yameogo said. “But it’s the price to pay to meet the demands of the global market.”
The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis. Read full, original post: Africa’s Top Cotton Grower Sees Good Crop After Monsanto Ban
