Sustainable development is a concept which permeates policy and action at an international, national and local level. A range of international organisations have sustainable development goals1 and plans and treaties exist to which the majority of the world’s nations are committed, for instance to protect biodiversity2 and reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases3. It is against this backcloth that a range of genetically modified (GM) crops have been developed and are being grown in many part of the world. Whilst recognising that there is considerable debate and resistance to the adoption of GM crops in some parts of the world, most notably Europe, in this paper we briefly review the ways in which GM crops are contributing at an international level to sustainable development, focussing on economic, environmental and social perspectives.