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You may think weeds resistant to herbicides are a new phenomenon linked to the overuse of glyphosate in genetically engineered crops, but nothing could be further from the truth. Next year will mark the 60th anniversary of the first reports of herbicide-resistant weeds, while this year marks only the 20th anniversary of glyphosate-resistant crops.
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“Though there are currently 35 weed species resistant to . . . glyphosate, there are four times as many weed species resistant to ALS inhibitors and three times as many resistant to PS II inhibitors,” [says David Shaw, Ph.D., a Mississippi State University weed scientist.]
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“The sheer size of the crop acreage impacted by glyphosate-resistant weeds has made glyphosate the public face for the pervasive problem of resistance,” says Shaw. “But resistance issues are far broader than a single herbicide and were around long before glyphosate-resistant, genetically engineered crops were even introduced.”
Research shows that resistant weeds can evolve whenever a single approach to weed management is used . . . making a diverse, integrated approach to weed management the first line of defense. . . .
Read full, original post: WSSA Scientists Say Herbicide Resistance Predates Genetically Engineered Crops by 40 Years
