What's On?
October 5, 2008 : Scare stories have drowned out the good that GM could do
Acres of newsprint and hours of television have been devoted to the GM crop controversy - quite an achievement for a foodstuff that is grown in no significant quantities in this country, or for that matter in this continent. Britain, like the rest of Europe, was long ago frightened away from producing and eating GM food by a media campaign that has been based mainly on hearsay and only marginally on science.
And that is a shame. As senior scientists have pointed out, GM crops have considerable potential to help the planet, despite the claims of their opponents. Environment groups such as Greenpeace claim the stuff is dangerous. But not a single verifiable case of illness that has been triggered by GM produce has been established in the US, even though Americans have been eating genetically modified food since 1994 and 75 per cent of all processed foods in the US now contain a GM ingredient. Opponents claim there are long-term health risks but offer no concrete evidence.
The Guardian
