Question

Ecological concern of golden rice commercial production

Answer 1

Two main concerns about potential environmental impacts remain the focus of public attention. These are, the possibility of a genetically modified crop becoming a weed, and the possibility of unwanted genes being transferred to wild relatives. Plants possess varying degrees of quantifiable inherent weedy behaviour. Thus, the effect of a transgene on weediness will be mainly a function of the new genetic background into which it is introduced. Weeds are mainly an agricultural problem and not an environmental one, requiring adequate management practices in the field to be dealt with. The other main concern is with the displacement of related plants in the wild or the introgression of transgenes into those wild relatives, principally in centres of origin. One of the questions being debated is whether the introgression of a transgene into wild relatives could cause loss of biodiversity at all or be different in any way from traditionally bred commercial varieties.