Crop Biotechnology

Citation

May, C.D. (2004), "Crop Biotechnology", Foresight, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 58-59. https://doi.org/10.1108/14636680410531561

At a time when there is a major controversy between Europe and the USA about the acceptability of GM foods, and in the UK we have the report of a government committee on the safety of GM food crops, and await the results of environmental trials on a number of these crops, it seems particularly appropriate to review what has been published on these issues, and on the wider issues of the acceptability of the whole concept of gene transfer and the way in which the technology is being used and promoted by biotechnology companies.

Genetically Modified Foods – Debating Biotechnology provides a valuable selection of such published material, with introductions from the editors, and includes a wide range of issues, from ethics to safety to the use or abuse of patents on living organisms. It sets the scene by quoting the Prince of Wales's Reith Lecture in which he objects to the whole project of biotechnology, especially as applied to agriculture. The Prince advocates an “organic” approach to agriculture and the environment as the only sustainable route for the future. This is balanced by a reply from Richard Dawkins, reminding us that “Nature is red in tooth and claw” and that it is only human ingenuity which has made it possible for mankind to support itself at anything like the current level. Mankind alone, he argues, shows foresight, giving the opportunity to plan for the long term – something unique in nature. Evolution in contrast is based only on a response to the current conditions, and cannot see beyond them to possible future scenarios.

The editors have clearly read widely on the subject, and only someone who has read even more widely can fairly criticize the selection they have made. The reviewer can only state that the balance seems consistent with his reading in limited areas of the field which are his particular interest. There is also a problem that the most emotive articles which have received most publicity, and have probably had the most influence on public opinion at least in Europe, are not balanced academic publications in peer‐reviewed journals, nor even measured statements published in the more respected science magazines, but unreferenced articles in the popular press which have made exaggerated claims based on limited evidence. Hence one could argue that the anti‐GM argument is under‐represented, for the majority of the articles reproduced in the book do not come out entirely negatively on the use of GM technology. Indeed, it seems to be difficult on a rational reading of these extracts to come to such a sweeping conclusion, driving one to decide that safety must be considered case by case, and that much depends on the way in which the use of the technology is controlled and directed.

Ethical objections are well discussed, and the technology is set in the context of the gradual development of more sophisticated techniques of plant breeding from the dawn of agriculture to the present. A strong case is presented that destruction of forests and conversion of more land to agriculture are a much greater threat to biodiversity than an appropriate use of GM technology, and even that taken overall, on the basis of an increasing rather than static population over the next 50 years, the precautionary principle demands cautious use of all the technological resources at our disposal, including genetic modification.

One thing is clear – that the way in which the industry has handled regulation and intellectual property issues has had a profound effect on public attitudes. The narrow pursuit of commercial advantage in the interests of short term “shareholder value” has been a major force in consolidating opposition by a wide range of non‐government organizations, including many whose main concern is not the means, but the outcome in the disadvantaged parts of our world. Thus the opposition has spread from green groups to a wide range of development charities such as Oxfam and Christian Aid.

The overall message of this book is plain – it is not whether to use the technology, but how.

Crop Biotechnology presents papers given at an American Chemical Society symposium, and is thus much more technical, and quite a heavy read for anyone not fully conversant with the field. The authors are almost all either American academics or employees of the US Department of Agriculture. As such, they are involved in the development of GM crops. However, what strikes the non‐specialist reader is the concern to consider possible drawbacks of each particular type of development – for example, the development of resistance in pests or in weed species.

The positive attributes discussed include cold hardiness, salt tolerance, drought resistance and plant pathogen resistance in addition to the better‐known traits of pesticide and insect resistance. The aim is that agriculture in future should do less to fit the environment to the plant (for example, by extensive irrigation, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides), and should rather fit the plant to the environment. The practitioners of biotechnology do not modify plants in ignorance, but have done much to increase the knowledge of plant physiology, including the way it can be changed by conventional breeding as well as by genetic “engineering”. Both are in fact “genetic modification”, all that differs is the means.

Many of the problems such as resistance have already been seen in the products of conventional breeding, and in all cases what matters is good farming management. But there are real benefits. Herbicide resistance, for example, can encourage minimal tillage, with a reduction in soil erosion. Pest resistance can be targeted to specific families of insects, with minimal effect on beneficial insects such as ladybirds, lacewings, and bees. Additional benefits can be seen in reduced crop damage, and lower levels of harmful mycotoxins in the food produced.

Although not an easy read, this book gives the reader a feel for the depth of knowledge which now exists in this field, and the concern of scientists to reassure the public by understanding and evaluating possible health and environmental risks. A final chapter demonstrates the gulf in public reaction which has developed between public concerns in the USA, and those in Europe. It is perhaps ironic that public concern is greater now about a technology where the risks are more considered and evaluated, than with any past introduction of a new technology.