The cultivation of GM herbicide-tolerant crops may be regarded as a temporary aberration, rather than the revolution originally proclaimed by the proponents of these crops, a new GeneWatch UK report shows.

The report, titled “Time for the end of GM/GE herbicide tolerant crops?”, looks at the economic, environmental and social impacts of growing Roundup Ready crops and newer herbicide-tolerant crops, reviewing more than 25 years of experience with this technology.

Here are some of the issues the report covers:

• Roundup Ready crops do not have higher yields
• Blanket spraying of Roundup Ready crops with weedkiller leads to resistant weeds
• Patents and monopolies add further costs and prevent seed saving
• Demand for non-GM seeds and ingredients is increasing
• Growing GM crops risks expensive contamination incidents
• Impact of Roundup Ready crops on farmers’ choice, land rights and indebtedness
• Roundup Ready crops have negative environmental impacts
• Roundup Ready crops pose unknown risks to human health