Britain’s Royal Society Issues Report Advocating GM Crops
The Royal Society has issued an October 2009 report, Reaping the Benefits: Science and the sustainable intensification of global agriculture, that calls for “a £2 billion ‘Grand Challenge’ research program on global food security.”
According an October 21 press release, the world must increase food crop production by at least 50 percent by 2050 to meet global demands without damaging the environment. The “Grand Challenge” program should thus aim to support public research and policies designed to explore “new methods of crop management to increase yields and minimize environmental impact. It should also support the development of improved crop varieties by both conventional breeding and genetic modification.”
The report assesses “science-based technologies and developments in biological science that are seen to have potential benefits for increasing crop yields.” It specifically examines the consequences and complications of food crop innovation stemming from short-term (less than eight years), medium-term (nine to16 years) and long-term (more than 16 years) projects. The Royal Society specifically analyzes plans involving the “breeding and [genetic modification] of new varieties of crops that are resistant to disease, drought, salinity, heat and toxic heavy metals,” noting that some “new varieties of wheat with high water use efficiency have shown yield increases of [10 to 15 percent].”
“It’s unmistakable that scientific development holds the key to ensuring future food security. The Green Revolution was built on decades of substantial global investment in agricultural research and if we are to overcome the challenge that now lies before us, we will need an even greater agricultural revolution,” a report author was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, the UK Soil Association has since issued a statement refuting the Royal Society recommendations. “GM is past its sell-by date,” the group’s policy coordinator stated. “For over two decades, huge claims have been made about the potential for GM, which have not come to fruition. Why is an organization like the Royal Society banging the drum for a failing technology when exciting new developments such as Marker Assisted Selection, included in the report recommendations, are producing almost all of the successful innovations in crop breeding?” See Soil Association Statement, October 21, 2009.
