GM crops ‘will not solve world hunger’

By: Katie Mantell

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<h1>GM crops ‘will not solve world hunger’</h1>
<h4>By: Katie Mantell</h4>
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<p><P>Genetically modified (GM) crops can do little to address world hunger, and could even pose a serious threat to poor farmers, according to a new report from a leading development action group.</P><br />
<P><em>GM Crops – Going Against the Grain</em>, released this week by the organisation ActionAid, suggests that at best GM crops are irrelevant to the world’s poor, as they are more suited to large-scale commercial agriculture than to the needs of poor farmers. At worst, it says, they threaten to push poor farmers deeper into debt, making them more reliant on expensive seeds and chemicals.</P><br />
<P>“GM does not provide a magic bullet solution to world hunger,” says Matthew Lockwood, head of policy at ActionAid. “What poor people really need is access to land, water, better roads to get their crops to market, education and credit schemes.”<BR><?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p><BR><a href="http://www.actionaid.org/resources/pdfs/gatg.pdf" target="_blank" onclick="pageTracker._trackPageview('/tracking/external/'+this.href);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Link to full report <EM>GM Crops – Going Against the Grain</EM> (PDF)</A><BR><BR>© SciDev.Net 2003</o:p></P></p>

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Genetically modified (GM) crops can do little to address world hunger, and could even pose a serious threat to poor farmers, according to a new report from a leading development action group.

GM Crops – Going Against the Grain, released this week by the organisation ActionAid, suggests that at best GM crops are irrelevant to the world’s poor, as they are more suited to large-scale commercial agriculture than to the needs of poor farmers. At worst, it says, they threaten to push poor farmers deeper into debt, making them more reliant on expensive seeds and chemicals.

“GM does not provide a magic bullet solution to world hunger,” says Matthew Lockwood, head of policy at ActionAid. “What poor people really need is access to land, water, better roads to get their crops to market, education and credit schemes.”

Link to full report GM Crops – Going Against the Grain (PDF)

© SciDev.Net 2003