Biotechnology, Agriculture and the Developing World: The Distributional Implications of Technological Change

by Timothy M. Swanson (Editor)

Overview

How will the industrial changes implicit within new biotechnologies affect modern agriculture? This book investigates these changes and provides an economic analysis of the industrial and distributional impacts of new biotechnologies, addressing in detail the significant consequences for developing countries.

One of the most important facets of biotechnological change is the development of new technologies for appropriating the value of innovations in related industries. In agriculture these new appropriation technologies are known as 'genetic use restriction technologies', which enable the innovator to capture the value of innovative plant varieties by preventing their reproduction after purchase. This book analyses the implications of such technologies in terms of global agricultural production, the rate of innovation at the technological frontier and, in particular, the diffusion of these innovations across the globe. The authors set forth the economic and institutional framework within which innovations are occurring, focusing on the impacts on the least technologically advanced nations and their incentives to conserve genetic resources for use in future research and development.

This stimulating book should be widely read by agricultural and resource economists, development economists, and scholars and researchers of environmental economics. Policymakers in developing countries will also gain valuable insights into the distribution of the potential benefits from biotechnology.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781840646795
Publisher:	Edward Elgar Publishing
Publication date:	04/26/2002
Pages:	296
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Edited by Timothy M. Swanson, Centre for International Environmental Studies, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Switzerland

Table of Contents

Contents:

Introduction

1. Biotechnologies and Developing Countries: How Will the Anticipated Industrial Changes in Agriculture Affect Developing Countries?
Timothy Swanson

PART I: SETTING THE SCENE: THE FRAMEWORK FOR CONSIDERING BIOTECHNOLOGY’S IMPACTS
2. Population Growth and Agricultural Intensification in Developing Countries
Nadia Cuffaro

3. The Impacts of GURTs: Agricultural R&D and Appropriation Mechanisms
Timothy Swanson and Timo Goeschl

4. Agricultural Biotechnology and Developing Countries: Proprietary Knowledge and Diffusion of Benefits
Charles Spillane

PART II: A CASE STUDY ON TERMINATORS: THE IMPACTS OF BIOTECHNOLOGIES ON BENEFIT DISTRIBUTION
5. The Impact of Terminator Gene Technologies on Developing Countries: A Legal Analysis
William W. Fisher

6. Impact of Terminator Technologies in Developing Countries: A Framework for Economic Analysis
C.S. Srinivasan and Colin Thirtle

7. The Impact of GURTs on Developing Countries: A Preliminary Assessment
Timothy Swanson and Timo Goeschl

8. Forecasting the Impact of Genetic Use Restriction Technologies: A Case Study on the Impact of Hybrid Crop Varieties
Timo Goeschl and Timothy Swanson

PART III: BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIODIVERSITY: THE IMPACTS OF BIOTECHNOLOGIES ON CONSERVATION OF GENETIC RESOURCES
9. Key Issues in Using Molecular Techniques to Improve Conservation and Use of Plant Genetic Resources
Carmen de Vincente, Toby Hodgkin and Geoffrey Hawtin

10. Biotechnology and Traditional Breeding in Sub-Saharan Africa
Vittorio Santaniello

CONCLUSION
11. Policy Options for the Biotechnology Revolution: What Can be Done to Address the Distributional Implications of Biotechnologies?
Timothy Swanson and Timo Goeschl

Index

Editorial Reviews

'. . . the volume offers many interesting calculations and insights.'

Robert E. Evenson

The product of research sponsored by the UK Department for International Development and a May 2000 workshop held in Rome, Italy, this book comprises 11 contributions from experts affiliated with the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (Rome, Italy) and the Institute for Plant Biology (U. of Zurich, Switzerland), and from academics in agriculture, food economics, law, and land economy affiliated with universities in the UK, US, and Italy. They investigate ways in which industrial changes implicit in new biotechnologies will affect modern agriculture; analyze industrial and distribution impacts, including consequences for developing countries; and look at genetic use restriction technologies and their implications for global agricultural production. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)