Biosafety management and pesticide use in China's Bt cotton production

•This study uses data collected in 2006 and 2007 in North China Plain.•Bt cotton varieties without biosafety certificates (BC) have been widely used by farmers.•Bt cotton varieties with BC outperform those without BC with regard to pesticide use.

As the rapid development of Genetically Modified crops, Chinese government has been increasing its efforts in GM crop biosafety management. However, the rapid expansion of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton varieties and less regulated seed industry also resulted in a large amount of Bt cotton varieties that bypassed China's biosafety regulations. This study shows that the Bt cotton varieties without biosafety certificates (BC) have been widely used by farmers in practice. Econometric analysis further shows that the Bt cotton varieties with BC outperform the varieties without BC in terms of pesticide use. The paper concludes with policy implications.