The research is in Gm Crops Debate (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3134278.stm)

and it looks like Britain doesn't want it.

Sheffield - infact south yorkshire is one of the areas of Britian that has NOT declared themselves GM-Free areas. This means that they have NOT committed to:

Advising farm tenants of the Council's anti-GM position.
Banning GM food from local food services such as school meals and residential homes.
Applying to be excluded from growing certain GM crops

What are folks thought son this? Do your thoughts mirror those of the research - you don't trust it, don't like don't want it??

Personally I think the whole thing stinks. I think mankind has meddled too long with nature ways and at some point she is gonna bite back and HARD!!! I don't want to eat GM crops, I don't want them in my county, I don't want them in my country or any other neighbouring one.

*steps off soapbox*

Moon Maiden

I took part in the debate and voted against GM crops.

You cannot modify the structure of a crop and then plant it in an open field. There is too much risk of mutation with non GM crops and you could render an entire food source uneatable.

Can you imagine if a staple such as corn or wheat got contaminated and mutated to such a state that it was useless?

If you must grow GM crops, then it should be in sealed biodomes.

The biggest factor for me against GM crops was the statement "The US have been eating GM foods for over 8 years" - look how they've turned out!

Why do they want to GM modify food anyway ?

Is it to improve the nutritional value or natural food stuf ... or maybe to increase profits of the companies involved in the food industry ?

I think it's madness to medle with nature .......

I'm willing to give GM foods the benefit of the doubt subject to two conditions:

A cast iron guarantee that there is no possibility of cross contamination

Food labelling of all ingredients

That way if anyone doesn't want to eat GM food they don't have to.

Anyone can give a cast iron guarantee ... that doesn't mean it won't happen ...

I am totally against this meddling with mother nature. Whoever heard of crossing animal and vegetables and where does this put vegetarians?

It is been sold as the answer to a world food problem when it's real aim is to generate lots of dosh for the agricultural/food industry.

I eat organic but it will be impossible to do so with cross pollination of crops.

Even if food is labelled as of GM origin in the shops what about eating out? Will food outlets have to list all their ingredients and their source and who will police all this?

I don't think for one minute that this arrogant government will listen to it's people.

[controversial reply]

It's all scaremongery IMHO. I'll eat anything. GM or not. Organic or not. British beef (on the bone) or not.

I don't really know enough about the science to know how safe it is, but I figure that plants and crops are constantly being modified by "Mother Nature" (and she's not always right), so let the scientists get involved (even if they're not always right either). Two heads are better than one and all that...

[/controversial reply]

I am not sure I know enough about this but this is what I think it means...

Someone with lots of money, like some big food company or farming outfit, tamper with vegetables and grain etc to make it more frost resistant, or redder or nicer for bees to visit or something....that is genetic modification.........am I right? Not exactly sure really

And critics say that once you start tampering you might mess things up for good, like err...things become resistant to weed killer and try to grow all over the place...or erm, the all new yellower than yellow sweet corn kills potato plants if put nearby

I made that up, because I dont know any examples, but am I on the right lines? Is this what everyone is talking about?

Like mixing two roses together to made a new one of a pretty colour etc.... the difference being that we will be eating the results of these changes, not just putting them in a vase?

Can someone with a bit of knowledge please advise


LB
x

I think the main problem with GM crops is the potential threat to our natural wild plants by hybridisation. I do not see how the consequencies of this can possibly be predicted or estimated. Because GM crops may be modified to be resistant to weedkillers or to be resistant to preditors any hybrid plants produced may be very difficult to eradicate.