There is more than 400 million acres of biotech crops being planted around the world

Major leaders in Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) include the US, Brazil, Argentina, India, Canada and China, with annual growth rates of 10-15%

This total acreage represents around 10% of all the world's cropland

These crops are being developed to be herbicide resistant, to improve water usage and decrease carbon footprints

An Ontario project led by Dr. Miodrag Grbic, University of Western Ontario, is working to improve pest control in the vegetable production industry, specifically creating tools and technologies to reduce the damage spider mites cause to the annual $500 million greenhouse vegetable industry in Ontario

Researchers are developing new strains of foods such as rice that contains vitamin A,which plays a crucial role in eyesight, and new varieties of beans that have been enhanced with various properties, such as cancer fighting antioxidants

Researchers across Canada are creating new ways to control invasive species and reduce the destruction inflicted on Canada's forests – an industry that exported $23.3 billion worth of forest products in 2009. One such researcher is Dr. Basil Arif at the Great Lakes Forestry Centre of the Canadian Forest Service. He is developing a virus to control the spruce budworm, one of the most destructive pests to Canada's forests