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Scotland To Ban GM Crops

Posted by Soulskill on from the watch-out-for-that-dihydrogen-monoxide-too dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Scotland's rural affairs minister has announced the country will ban the growing of genetically modified crops. He said, "I am concerned that allowing GM crops to be grown in Scotland would damage our clean and green brand, thereby gambling with the future of our £14 billion food and drink sector." Many Scottish farmers disapprove of the ban, pointing out that competing farms in nearby England face no such restriction. "The hope was to have open discussion and allow science to show the pros and cons for all of us to understand either the potential benefits or potential downsides. What we have now is that our competitors will get any benefits and we have to try and compete. It is rather naïve."

4 of 361 comments (clear)

  1. Wait, what? by chinton · · Score: 0, Troll

    Aren't all crops genetically modified?

    1. Re:Wait, what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll

      Ahh, so it's a throw the baby (Insect/disease resistance) out with the bathwater (patents) situation.

      Good going Scotland! Perhaps we could ban software to prevent piracy!

    2. Re:Wait, what? by jriding · · Score: 1, Troll

      anytime a company holds a patent on our craps and can one day charge $1000 per seed or hold everyone hostage by not producing the seeds unless political or financial agreements is made is a BAD thing. Never mind the potential for increase pesticides that then drain into our water supplies or stay in the food for us to digest.

      --
      love the taste, hate the texture
  2. Neo-Luddite scaremongering wins again by Badlight · · Score: 1, Troll

    Do these people want us to go back to the Stone Age? Because that's what's going to happen.

    These people are opposed to any progress that might actually solve the problems we face, which only leaves us with the option of going backwards.