(Summary)
When countries reject genetically modified organisms because of unsubstantiated claims of health risks, agricultural companies in those countries are forced to use less precise and potentially more dangerous methods of breeding high-yielding crops: gene-altering chemicals and radiation treatment. The Washington Post reported that these methods are not regulated, despite multiple recommendations by the National Academy of Sciences. By contrast, any GM crop developed using techniques of genetic engineering, wherein scientists can precisely alter a gene with known and tested results, is heavily regulated both in the US and even more so in the European Union. The NAS warns against such mutation-inducing chemicals and radiation treatment, the Washington Post reported, and that “regulating genetically modified crops while giving a pass to products of mutation breeding isn’t scientifically justified.”
Read the full, original story here: “Mutant Crops Drive BASF Sales Where Monsanto Denied: Commodities”
