Farm Scale Trials
A new UK report, A novel approach to the use of genetically modified herbicide tolerant crops for environmental benefit", has claimed that growing GM sugar beet in the UK significantly increases the amount of wildlife in fields. The research was done by Brooms Barn Research Station and was part-funded by Monsanto, but "independently" assessed. It was based on modifying the herbicide regime for GM Roundup Ready sugar beet and claimed that later, more targeted spraying produced more weeds, hence more insects and eventually better response from bird populations. However, the data was very incomplete, and the timing of the herbicide application was absolutely crucial. It showed that early application resulted in an increased yield, but significantly less biodiversity improvement. Late application meant lower yields, but higher wildlife dividends.
The claims that growing GM sugar beet is good for farmland biodiversity are not supported by conclusive facts. The argument that GM crops will provide huge environmental benefits has been pushed by the biotech industry for years, but the report does not prove this.
Greenpeace believes that:
- The report does not show any environmental benefit. Brian Johnson of English Nature said, "there is no real evidence of any benefits." The Government's Chief Scientist, Professor Dave King, agrees, saying that, "the strongest claims are not conclusively demonstrated." The RSPB have concluded that, "the suggestion that GM crops help skylarks is not strongly supported by the facts."
- There is no reason to suppose that farmers will ever adopt this technique. Farmers can already take steps to help promote wildlife but they do not because they are not incentivised. The idea that farmers can be given incentives to grow GM sugar beet to help promote bird life does not add up - you can do exactly the same with conventional crops! This issue has been a political bone of contention for years in disputes about Common Agricultural Policy and the role of agri-environment schemes. In addition, standard procedure with GM sugar beet is to spray early - why would farmers ignore this advice?
- Better management of sustainable farm production and wildlife is already possible, i.e. organically grown sugar beet. Organic sugar is already being grown around the UK even Government say that it is better for wildlife. However, this report starts from the baseline of industrialised agriculture - if the baseline were organic agriculture you would see greater reductions in herbicides and marked improvements in wildlife.
- There is absolutely no market for GM sugar beet in the UK. The only major buyer of the sugar beet is British Sugar and they have said for years that they will not buy any GM because there's no market for it. They are buying organic though. Why would farmers want to grow something they could not sell?
- Any wildlife benefits, subject to any actual evidence, and massive changes in agricultural support systems and huge changes in consumer and farmer attitudes would be temporary because farmers would be forced into using new herbicide systems due to increasing weed resistance to glyphosate. This is already happening in the USA.
- Spraying herbicides late can mean spraying directly on to the hatchlings of many farmland birds second broods, which are the crucial ones currently for maintaining relevant bird populations (especially Skylarks).
- Sugar Beet farmers were originally sold the idea of GM sugar beet on the basis that it was good for weed control and producing clean ground. Now they are selling the crops because they can help produce lots of weeds!
- We are talking about the release of living, genetically modified organisms, which will pose potentially irreversible long-term risks to the environment. These include gene transfer to wild relatives of sugar beet which grow naturally in the UK (such as sea beet) and increasing weed resistance to the herbicide Roundup. It is because of major risks like these that Greenpeace is fundamentally opposed to the release of GM crops.
