YOU won鈥檛 be eating genetically modified bread anytime soon, wherever you live. Agribiotech giant Monsanto, which has spent seven years and hundreds of millions of dollars developing a GM wheat variety resistant to the company鈥檚 herbicide Roundup, announced on Monday that it will put the project on hold despite field tests that show the variety helps to improve crop yield and weed control.
The company cites a鈥漧ess attractive鈥� market for wheat than for its GM cotton, soya and maize. Monsanto鈥檚 wheat would have faced tough competition, says Charles Arntzen, a plant biologist at Arizona State University in Tempe. 鈥淲eed control in wheat is already pretty effective and very cheap,鈥� he says. 鈥淏etter technology doesn鈥檛 impress farmers. You have to save money.鈥�
But farming, food safety and environmental groups that opposed Monsanto鈥檚 plans for splicing genes into the one of world鈥檚 basic food crops say the announcement has broader implications. 鈥淭his is a huge victory,鈥� says Joseph Mendelson of the Center for Food Safety in Washington DC, 鈥渁nd signifies a turning point in the battle against genetically engineered foods.鈥�
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