In Focus
Agricultural biotechnology encompasses a range of modern plant breeding techniques. For centuries, farmers have tried to improve their crops by means of crossing, relying on the ran- dom rearrangement of existing genes between two closely related parent plants. Modern agri- cultural biotechnology improves crops in more targeted ways. The best known technique is ge- netic modification, but the term agricultural biotechnology also covers such techniques as Marker Assisted Breeding, which increases the effectiveness of conventional breeding. Industrial biotechnology uses enzymes and
micro-organisms to make biobased products in sectors such as chemicals, food and feed, deter- gents, paper and pulp, textiles and bioenergy. In doing so, it uses renewable raw materials and is one of the most promising, innovative ap- proaches towards lowering greenhouse gas emissions. The application of industrial biotech- nology has been proven to make significant con- tributions towards mitigating the impacts of climate change in these and other sectors.
Q. Some people have a negative view of biotechnology, associating it with genetic modification and other techniques that they consider unnatural. How would you address these concerns?
ND - Recent polls on biotechnology in Europe show that many people are unaware of what the uses of technology are. According to a 2010 Eu- robarometer on food related risks, only 8% of Europeans spontaneously say they are worried about GM in food. Although there is concern about GM and biotechnology, consumers report a low level of knowledge about GM food. This lack of public knowledge applies more gener- ally to the whole biotech sector. In a 2010 Euro- pean survey, 80% of Europeans declared to be in favour of or were unopposed to biotechnology. However, findings also highlighted that Euro- peans are still hungry for facts and communica- tion about the technology.
Genetic modification of plants is a more tar- geted approach to a technique that farmers have already used for centuries to improve their crops. GM crops have been increasingly cultivated and consumed all over the world for 15 years with- out any proven negative effects on health or on the environment and increasingly benefit farm- ers as well as consumers. Better awareness of these facts disperses the negativism surrounding genetic modification.
New European Economy
Q. Which genetically modified crops can be grown in the EU today and do they affect bio- diversity?
ND - GM crops can only be cultivated in Eu- rope when they receive approval. To date, only two GM crop types have been approved for cul- tivation in the EU: insect-resistant maize and, since 2010, a potato for industrial use. Numer- ous studies have demonstrated that GM crops have no adverse effects on non-target insects. On the contrary, several characteristics of GM crops can lead to decrease of the loss of biodiversity from agricultural practices - GM crops allow for intensive farming, which means that less land is needed to grow the same amount of crops (sus- tainable intensification concept); they require less insecticides and entail the use of more en- vironmentally friendly herbicides as well as con- servation tillage practices.
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