In the future, cranberries may be sweet enough to snack on without sugar, thanks to the efforts of biologists and geneticists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Going back in time to 1959, a few cranberry batches tested positive for aminotriazole, an herbicide, causing a nationwide panic and collapsing the cranberry industry almost overnight.
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Greenpeace activists protest against a new genetically modified corn, US firm Pioneer’s TC1507, on the Champs de Mars in Paris, in front of the Eiffel tower on February 12, 2014. The banner reads : “Genetically modified organism = Toxic agriculture. Protect us !”. The genetically modified corn TC1507, won EU approval in controversial fashion on February 11, 2014 after a large majority of member states failed to block it. AFP PHOTO / ERIC FEFERBERG
In Europe, the offspring of a genetically modified ewe “escaped” from the French National Institute for Agricultural Research and ended up on the Parisian meat market, sparking discussion on the implications of GM animals in the food supply, scientific literacy of the general public, and mistrust of the scientific community. In America, Monsanto’s latest herbicide-resistant crops continue the conversation on the consequences of accelerated selection for genetic mutations.
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