How will increased market concentration in the biotech industry affect farmers?
Agricultural biotechnology companies are also very integrated. That is, they buy research companies, farms, processing plants, transportation companies, and market outlets so they can own and control all the profits derived from the GMO. Some consumers are fearful that these large biotech companies will increasingly control our food supply, be totally driven by the profit motive, disregard environmental safeguards, and destroy the small family farm in the process. Alternatively, biotech crops may allow farmers the opportunity to produce more specialized food crops that do not have the volumes of production needed to interest the large agribusiness. For example, organically grown Bt cotton or Bt sweet corn may appeal to a small but steady consumer base. The second wave of GMO crops with micronutrient or pharmaceutical properties may also provide profitable niche markets for small farms to fill.
