GM Crops

I am not comfortable with the consept of GM crops. Their use could lead to greatly increased use of pesticides to the detriment of the natural environment. Like Heron, I do not think that the multinational producers are trying to make them for the benefit of the hungry, more for shareholders profits.

If anything I am even more against GM that B is. To start with I do not see how it is going to help the third world. GM crops are all hybrids and you can't save seed from them. Currently the folk in third world countries save the seed from one year to use the next. Again folk in the third world can not afford the high levels of pesticide needed to sustain these crops.

I too suspect this has got nothing to do with humanitarian concerns but the lining of Monsanto's shareholders pockets. I hope and trust that the British government will continue to ban GM crops in the UK.

Finally if GM does come to the country there is a possibility of the bees cross pollinating so that non GM crops are tainted. This could mean that someone who has grown their crops for sale organically suddenly finds they are no longer organic.

I could go on and on.. may I suggest folk look to the Soil Association, Garden Organic and other organisations all of whom are totally against GM.

no dout my views will be outragas but I firmly belive that nature rules, I belive tht she will allways sort out the population question,and the likes of you and me will not realy have a say in the end, ie' wars famin things like the black death , flue, earthquakes, well you yourself can go on,I think our biggest worrie is who has the red button and what fool can get his finger on it, because the bombs we have today will make the attombomb look like a firecracker. don't get me wrong I am totaly aginst GM

Blimey, i think i might agree with you :-O

i`m with you on this one Heron.

I agree with you Heron and every other comment on this page. Where companies like Monsanto are involved it is not for altruistic reasons and nature is a marvellous thing and can outfox the smartest of the scientists every time. They had the so called answers to feeding the 3rd world countries years ago when I was studying science and yet millions still starve. Organics is not a moneyspinner, hence no real financial backing. It boils down to starvation around the world and the promotion of GM is all to do with politics and greed

I am going to play devil's advocate here. Is it not that most people who talk down GM crops have no idea what they are talking about. After all many of the plants we grow and eat have been modified in some ways. If scientists and plant breeders hadn't done a bit of modifying, we would be starving by now, with the huge population of the world. I want to know more and I think trials should go ahead.

I agree with you up to a point WB go on with the triles by all means but not in my back yard, first cultevate the desert then grow your crops there hange on a minite if you cultevate the deserts we will not need GM and you will also create a place for people to live.

Some interesting points made here. Afraid I'm going to "sit on the fence" . I don't know enough about GM crops to give a true opinion for or against. My cynical side asks the question Moon Grower mooted about Monsanto and shareholders pockets being lined...at the end of the day that's all they are interested in....MONEY...and its not just GM foods.....its in all walks of life.
As Cliffo says......mother nature usually finds a way......

as far as I understand it modifying between similar plants has gone on with or without our help for ever BUT modifying plant genes with animal?
or cloning is positivly dangerous

How did we get thorn less plants, stringless bean and seed free grapes and tangelos?

I realy think Pamg answered that well

Yes - Pamg and I posted at the same time Cliffo

I agree with the general gist of anti-GM further development, ie the first bunch of comments on this thread. I think it's completely immoral to patent developed seeds and "own" them - which means poorer farmers cannot afford them, or harvest seed for following years.
Yes, we do have stringless beans etc, and yes to some extent the genie was out of the bottle long ago and there's no stopping it. However, not all synthetically developed crops taste better. For example, normal thorny blackberries from the hedge still taste way better.
It IS definitely down to human greed in the end. I believe there is actually enough food out there for us all, but we are doing a rubbish job of sharing it, so we are also too greedy! Arable farming per person takes up less room than livestock for instance. I don't have to become a vegetarian, but if I eat less meat it benefits everyone.
What's a tangelo then? That one must have passed me by. Is it related to a pedalo?

its a is a cross between a grapefruit and a tangerine

well that's greed, haveing orange juce and gratefruit befor brakefast LOL

When I first posted to this question I was worried that we were going to have another 'war'. I'm delighted to see everyone is responding in a rational and unemotional way.

I agree that we've been modifying crops since we started farming but these have been slow and sure. Creating a wheat crop with short straw being an example. We do it ourselves in our own gardens when we think - hey I wonder what a cross between, Crocus banaticus blue pearl and Crocus banaticus tricolour would look like. So we pollinate blue pearl with tricolour pollen and five or six years down the line we look and think 'Wow, that one looks good... this out of several hundred corms.'

My understanding of the way GM works is to splice genes of two totally different species together to produce, for example, a tomato with a tougher skin so it is easier to transport. On the Black Isle there were trials of GM rape which eventually came to a halt due to vociferous objections.

I recon the concencus is of caution, It's one thing to mess with flowers but food, the fhrase 'can of worms' comes to mind. I'm a trusting sort of person when it comes to 'Mother Nature' but people, no, polititions and 'experts' make a worrying combination. I would feel safer if we put more effort in reducing the rapid rate of population growth. The problem there is that more than one ethnic group want to dominate the others. can you imagine what his eminence the Pope would have to say, or those I'd be wise not to mention. Someone said earlier that Mother Nature will curb the population when it get's too big, but that will affect us all including those who have a responsible number of children . One thing I am sure of is that when (not if) the ethnic devide becomes roughly equal civil war will once again reduce the population as has happened before.

erm, yes I'm sure it's much wiser not to drag the Pope, Dalai Lama or anyone else into this, Heron! They'd be the first to share their packed lunch with the hungry.
Also as far as we know the Pope has had what you call " a responsible number of children "! Can't speak for the Dalai Lama - lol.

To the best of my knowledge the Dalai Lama is celebate, now there is a man to respect.

The earth was here long before man and it will be here long after man.

I never said that mother nature was either kind concidrate or even cairing, I belive that everything is down to mathmatic,s as in the snow flakes ,I belive that nature works like that like the seven years of plenty and the seven of faming, I don't think there is any danger of civel war over cread or coulor,those days are rapidly passing thank God it is just the few stupid on both sides that carrie on what most of us would rather they did not.

On a lighter note, I'm pleased to see that the number of people growing their own is increasing. A good relaxing pastime as well as good food.

Indeed Heron makes sense if at all possible.

So long as it's not GM seed :<)

Agreed Wagger

We shall all have to start saving our veggie seeds like Tony44....no risk of GM then Heron. We do it on flowers, so we can do it on veggies....

Just so long as they are not F1 hybrids. Saving brassica seed is also a bit of a challenge as they flower in the 2nd year. Chase and Garden Organic will continue to supply good seed for a long while yet I trust.

untill it gets cross polenated, I wonder if it will be too late when they realise what they have dun.