US Approaches 100 Percent Adoption of GE Crops

The USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) has released an updated report outlining the trends on adoption of genetically engineered (GE) crops in the U.S. Originally introduced in 1996, the adoption rates of GE seeds - mostly classified as herbicide tolerant (HT), insect resistant (Bt), or a combination of the two - has rapidly increased.

Today, more than 90 percent of the maize, cotton, and soybeans grown in the country are GE varieties, with the majority of the GE acreage being planted in those three crops. HT soybean acreage stands at 95 percent in 2023, HT cotton acreage at 94 percent, and HT maize at 91 percent. Meanwhile, Bt maize acreage topped 85 percent this year, and Bt cotton acreage reached 89 percent. Of this acreage, approximately 86 percent of the cotton acreage and 82 percent of the maize acreage is planted in stacked (a combination of Bt and HT) GE varieties.

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