1. Part III : Ethical Issues in Agriculture and Food Production
2. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
3.
4. Crop breeding was put on a scientific basis in the 20 th century resulting in marked increases in crop yield, especially in intensive agriculture in industrialised countries. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
5. However, plant breeding is limited by its relative imprecision and by genetic barriers to crossing except with closely related species. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
6. GM technology enables breeders to introduce into a crop any gene from any other organism. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
7. Since the mid-1990s several GM crops have been used in commercial production, mainly in the USA. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
8. However, there has been a concerted campaign in Europe to halt the development and use of GM crops, mainly on grounds of environmental and food safety. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
9. Further analysis of campaigners' claims reveals that they are often erroneous. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
10. However, as with the adoption of all novel technologies, a reasonable level of caution is advisable. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
11. There are also issues relating to global trade and justice which must not be confused with GM technology per se. Chapter 8. GM Crops and Food: A Scientific Perspective
Hinweis der Redaktion
Keywords: applications; biodiversity; biotechnology; environment; genome; GM; plant breeding; regulation; research; risk Summary Crop breeding was put on a scientific basis in the 20 th century resulting in marked increases in crop yield, especially in intensive agriculture in industrialised countries. However, plant breeding is limited by its relative imprecision and by genetic barriers to crossing except with closely related species. GM technology enables breeders to introduce into a crop any gene from any other organism. Since the mid-1990s several GM crops have been used in commercial production, mainly in the USA. However, there has been a concerted campaign in Europe to halt the development and use of GM crops, mainly on grounds of environmental and food safety. Further analysis of campaigners' claims reveals that they are often erroneous. However, as with the adoption of all novel technologies, a reasonable level of caution is advisable. There are also issues relating to global trade and justice which must not be confused with GM technology per se.
