GM seeds are often sold to farmers and the public on the grounds that they are the wave of the future, taking over where conventional plant breeding left off – but that might be changing

EXCERPT: As the Nature article points out: “Transgenic techniques, which target one gene at a time, have not been as quick [as conventional breeding] to manipulate [drought tolerance].”

Plant breeding vs. GMOs: Conventional methods lead the way in responding to climate change

By Doug Gurian-Sherman
Civil Eats, October 10, 2014
http://civileats.com/2014/10/10/plant-breeding-vs-gmos-conventional-methods-lead-the-way-in-responding-to-climate-change/

Genetically engineered (GE) seeds are often sold to farmers and the public on the grounds that they are the wave of the future, taking over where conventional plant breeding left off by improving productivity and sustainability. But that might be changing.

Last month, the highly respected science journal Nature published a news article reporting that conventional breeding substantially out-performs genetic engineering for several very important traits —drought tolerance and the ability of crops to use nitrogen (e.g., from fertilizer or manure) more efficiently.

It’s unusual to see the two methods compared. Science journals have presented advances in breeding for drought tolerance. But none have been bold enough to say what has been obvious for several years — that conventional breeding is working considerably better than genetically engineered seeds for this trait.

[Read on at http://civileats.com/2014/10/10/plant-breeding-vs-gmos-conventional-methods-lead-the-way-in-responding-to-climate-change/ ]