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Speaking at the annual general meeting of the Scottish Society for Crop Research in Dundee, Professor Dame Anne Glover, former chief scientific adviser to both the Scottish government and the European Commission president, highlighted the gap between the evidence that scientists painstakingly collect, and the decisions that then arise from the political process…
[She said,] “Politicians should provide leadership, but in the case of GM they are letting themselves be led by public opinion. Farmers are really at the sharp end of this, trying to produce crops under the pressures of climate, disease and pests. I would like to see farmers give the public a much more detailed understanding of what they do – ‘this is why we are growing certain varieties’, ‘this is why we need to use these chemicals’ and ‘this is what would help us do it differently’.”Public trust was a valuable commodity, noted Prof Glover, and farmers commanded more of it than politicians – or indeed the agri-chemical companies, who she said had to bear some blame for the poor publicity around GM crops.
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Read full, original post: Farmers must lead GM debate
