SUGAR beets genetically modified to resist one herbicide have accidentally
acquired the genes to resist another. The accident provides yet more evidence
that the widespread use of herbicide-resistant crops could lead to the creation
of superweeds.
European regulations forbid the creation of plants resistant to several
herbicides because they might become uncontrollable. However, in September, when
trial plots of beets designed to resist the herbicide glufosinate were sprayed
with glyphosate to kill them off, not all the plants died. In nine plots in
Britain, France and the Netherlands, 0.5 per cent of the crop survived. “That
adds up to a…
