Today, which reaches almost seven million listeners each week, heard how scientists at Sainsbury's laboratory have successfully introduced a gene from a wild relative of the potato that offers resistance to late blight.
The devastating fungal infection caused the Irish potato famine and costs UK farmers £60m to control. Today heard how the modified potatoes had also delivered ‘substantially higher yields' during three-years of field trials.
Prof Jonathan Jones said: “Most cultivated varieties of potato are completely susceptible to late blight. It’s a devastating disease and farmers typically spray ten to 15 times a year, 25 times in a wet year.
“Ultimately it is preferable in my view, and in many people’s views, to control this disease with genetics rather than chemistry. You have to do one of the other or you’ve got no potatoes.
He added: “I think attitudes are changing and this isn’t the only example. The tech has a lot to offer and people are starting to get it.”
Listen to the whole piece here.
The NFU’s chief science adviser, Dr Helen Ferrier, said: “The only way British farmers can grow GM crops is if the regulatory and political deadlock in EU is broken and applications can move smoothly through the system. Until then no seed company is going to invest huge sums in developing GM varieties for the UK market, when they have such good markets outside EU.
“So while it is really great when the public sector does field trials, we need the private sector to put something UK-relevant into its R&D pipeline. And that requires EU politicians to change their views.