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OftenBen  ·  3441 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: The Philae has landed! (We landed on a comet. +1 for humans)

    I haven't seen very many examples where genetic modification produced a better, more expedient varietal than good, old-fashioned husbandry.

It's usually not a change in yield(including chemical content), but a change in weather tolerances/requirements.

    At the same time, the increase in gluten sensitivity probably has a lot to do with the absolute gonzo emphasis on gluten in wheat over the past 30 years for the production of more stable baked goods.

I agree, but that's not the fault of the technology of genetic engineering. That's the fault of people misusing the tech.

    Sure, golden rice but that never really caught on and there are better ways toward it.

There are legal issues about it too, and other problems that aren't related to the organism itself, but it's implication.

    I guess what I'm saying is GMO crops, outside of nasty little gotchas like terminator genes, aren't necessarily worth the trouble. But then, that argument doesn't get written up much.

The terminator gene thing is a problem. A big problem, but again it's not the fault of the tech, it's the fault of the people. There is an economic incentive to screw farmers as regularly and for as much cash as possible, and that should be stopped. But again, it's not the fault of the tech.