Does the use of biotech crops hurt other (nontarget) insects?
In reducing insect populations of one predator (such as the corn borer), farmers want to take care not to hurt or destroy other insect populations (what scientists call “nontarget species,” such as the monarch butterfly). When spraying traditional chemical insecticides, farmers risk destroying both target and nontarget species. But when corn is grown from genetically modified seeds (such as Bt corn), the plant has a natural resistance to the corn borer and the corn borer only. Again, planting GM seed can help reduce pesticide use and the risks to nontarget species.
