22.02.2008 | permalink
India is likely to grow genetically modified (GM) cotton on 80 percent of its total cultivated area under the fibre in the next 2-3 years, a global research body said on Monday. The country, the world’s second-biggest cotton producer, hopes to produce a record output of 31 million bales (1 bale = 170 kg) in the crop year to September as farmers plant more transgenic seeds. Indian farmers, who grow cotton on an average 9.06 million hectares, produced 28 million bales last year.