The Hidden Cost of Genetically Modified Foods

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That is maybe a good point. Nature did not intend for it to be here and man forced it here. How could you be so sure this is a one way street? Instead of diappear, what are the possibilities of disease and insects or pests becoming stronger? I think there is a great more probability of intensifing hazard. Like rBHT, d o h, just plain old poisoning, playing God has a fine line and I am growing my own organically, that is God enough for me. GMO's RIP
Blessings

joyce of 8:27PM December 11, 2009

I think these researchers are trying to "creat" a problem or maybe I should say "creat alarm". Some one once said: "If we did not attempt anything new until all potential problems were over come, nothing new would ever be attempted." So it is with GMOs and even conventional breeding for that matter.
I think farmers that I know who grow GMO squash in California are very happy with the GM virus resistance. Viruses present a far greater threat to profitable squash production in California than does bacterial wilt. Also it is easier to control cucumber beetles than it is to control aphids. GMO squash are definitely a positive advance in the area of squash production, in my opinion. I don't want to go back to previrus resist varieties.

Franklin Laemmlen of CA 4:10PM October 30, 2009

Great! But ecologists should know what plant breeders know for over half a century: 1. A new resistance provides an advantage that is usually temporary only. 2. The advantage more often than not has a penalty of some kind.
With small incremental advantages plant breeders try to feed an increasing world populatioin, with relatively good success. The most frequent penalty of a good resistance is the vulnerability of the plant because of the fragility of the resistance or because somewhere else in the genome an unexpected susceptibility pops up. I think this is standard knowledge among breeders and plant pathologists.
Though means exist to avoid spread of a transgene into a native population, this cannot always be avoided. If the gene effect would have been advantageous to the native population as a whole, nature might have invented that gene already. If not advantageous the new transgene will gradually disappear or linger about at los frequency, causing no harm. Please check this statement experimentally!

J.C. Zadoks of NE 7:15AM October 30, 2009