The area under genetically modified sugarcane in Brazil is expected to nearly double in the 2022/23 crop cycle, according to reports. Centro de Tecnologia Canavieira (CTC), a Brazilian company that focuses on the research, development and commercialisation of sugarcane varieties, estimates that new insect-resistant sugarcane varieties will cover 70,000 hectares in the 2022/23 season, up 89.2% from the 37,000 hectares planted in 2021/22.

In 2021, CTC received approval from Brazil’s biosafety regulatory agency, CTNBio, for the commercial release of its insect-resistant GM sugarcane variety possessing the CTC9005Bt genetic event, which confers resistance to sugarcane borer (Diatraea saccharalis) (see AgbioNews Jun 4, 2021). In total, 5 insect-resistant sugar cane varieties have been approved for cultivation in the country.