When are agricultural biotechnologies adapted to host country contexts? Evidence from the commercialisation of GM cotton in Argentina

Abstract

In this paper we explore how and why the affiliate of a multinational seed firm has adapted genetically modified cotton technologies, created elsewhere, for commercialisation within Argentina's agricultural sector. We argue that whilst a conventional economic rationale, such as market size, costs of local research and development, and the ability to appropriate benefits partly explain patterns of adaptation, the kinds of adaptation actually undertaken also reflect the outcome of political bargaining processes. Our findings imply that developing country governments may have scope for encouraging the international transfer and adaptation of foreign technology beyond the provision of economic incentives.