Impact of Bt cotton on pesticide poisoning in smallholder agriculture: A panel data analysis

► Farm level panel data from India are used to analyze health impacts of Bt cotton. ► Fixed-effects models show that Bt significantly reduces the use of toxic pesticides. ► Thus, Bt helps to avoid several million cases of farmer pesticide poisoning every year. ► These effects entail annual health cost savings of 14-51 million US$. ► The positive health externalities have increased over time.