Waste potential

of engineering plants to ultimately better cope with more extreme environmental conditions of heat and drought, or conversely higher rainfall, which are likely to appear in some regions as a result of climate change. " Britain and many other European countries have considerable expertise in plant and crop biology research " , wrote Robin McKie, science editor of the UK's Observer newspaper. " But that work is constantly frustrated. Crop trials are dug up and funding is blocked by governments embarrassed to be seen backing such work, " he said. But the EU shows little sign of budging on GM crops in the face of food prices, supply and security issues although it is overhauling other areas of agricultural policy to face this challenge (see page R449–R450). Earlier this month the European Commission pushed back a decision on permission for three genetically modified crops, saying that additional scientific analysis of their effects on the environment and human health was needed before they could be approved. One of the crops is a potato that produces extra starch — suitable for industrial uses and animal feed — and contains a gene that confers resistance to certain antibiotics. The other two are maize varieties engineered to produce their own pesticide. There are also two problems for advocates of greater pursuit of GM crop technology in the face of the current food commodity price rises: firstly that much of the demand is seen to be coming from China. The country has seen steep increases in economic growth in recent years which has led to a soaring demand for meat in the diet, and hence a huge increase in demand for animal feedstuffs in the world market. India, also undergoing rapid economic growth, is increasing its demands in the global market as well. The second problem seems to be that some GM crops produce a lower yield than conventional varieties. A study carried out on GM soya over three years by researchers at the University of Kansas has found that it produces about 10 per cent less than its conventional equivalent. Barney Gordon, of the university's department of agronomy, said he started the research (reported in the journal Better Crops) because many farmers who had changed over to the GM crop had noticed that yields are not as high as expected, even under optimal conditions. He grew a Monsanto GM soybean and an almost identical …