What are the most common characteristics the biotech companies test for in field trials?
Biotech companies develop genetically engineered crops for certain characteristics or traits, usually for properties that farmers desire. Two types of GE plants make up nearly all of the GE crops currently on the market: one type is crops engineered for insect resistance (IR), and the other is crops that can tolerate direct spraying of toxic pesticides (called herbicide tolerant, or HT crops). These two traits are also the most common in field trials. HT crops make up about 70% of all GE crop acreage in the U.S. These include Monsanto’s “Roundup Ready” (RR) crops, including RR soy, corn, cotton and canola. Roundup is an herbicide that will kill natural crops, but farmers can spray Roundup directly on RR plants. The crop will survive but nearby weeds will be killed. Most IR crops are also called “Bt” crops becaus they contain a gene from a bacteria, Bacillus thuringiensis, that is known to be toxic to certain insects. These plants are pesticides: they contain a pesticide that you cannot
