Brinjal or eggplant is an important vegetable crop in India. It is planted to 550,000 hectares in the country. Brinjal cultivation, however, is often input intensive, especially for insecticide applications. Brinjal is prone to attack from insect pests and diseases, the most serious of which is the fruit and shoot borer (FSB). FSB-resistant brinjal varieties expressing Bt proteins have been developed. Results of studies submitted to regulatory authorities in India confirm that Bt brinjal offers the opportunity to provide effective control against fruit and shoot borer, and decrease insecticide input by as much as 80%. Bt brinjal also yields significantly more marketable fruit than conventional hybrids and open-pollinated varieties.

Know more about Bt brinjal in India in the latest Pocket K produced by the Global Knowledge Center on Crop Biotechnology of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications. Download the material at http://www.isaaa.org/kc/inforesources/publications/pocketk/default.html#Pocket_K_No._35.htm (Copy and paste the link to your web browser)

Pocket Ks are Pockets of Knowledge, packaged series of information on crop biotechnology products and related issues. Other topics are also available at http://www.isaaa.org/kc.

(First published on Crop Biotech Update (ISAAA Newsletter), http://www.isaaa.org/kc/cropbiotechupdate/article/default.asp?ID=3502, December 5, 2008.)