Witless GM vandalism

For weeks, anti-GM protesters have been threatening to destroy the work taking place at Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire. The “day of action” was set for this Sunday, but it appears that somebody jumped the gun: over the weekend, fields of experimental wheat were invaded and vandalised, although the damage was not fatal. For the scientists who have pleaded in vain for the activists to listen to reason, this is a sad affair. These are not evil profiteers – they are diligent, ethical scientists attempting to create wheat that is naturally resistant to aphids, who have used every possible means to ensure that their work does not jeopardise the rest of the food chain. We in Europe often pride ourselves on being progressive – yet when it comes to GM, the Luddites have won. A spasm of indignation over “Frankenstein foods” saw genetically modified produce disappear from the shelves; where others embraced such crops, we turned up our noses. This was an error not only economically, but morally. Over the coming decades, the world’s population is set to soar. Since arable land is – as Charles Moore points out – something of a fixed commodity, we can only feed these extra mouths, and cope with the surging demand for meat in Asia, by making agriculture vastly more productive. Without a new Green Revolution, of the kind that saved millions, if not billions, of lives in India, we will condemn the poorest in the world to hunger and starvation. GM, if produced responsibly, offers one of the best hopes of achieving such a transformation. To oppose it on ethical grounds is short-sighted, ignorant and actively malicious. Rothamsted and others are trying to build a better future. We trust that the activists will see reason, and let this valuable work continue.