Implications of Gene Flow in the Scale-up and

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December 5, 2007
Issue Paper

Implications of Gene Flow in the Scale-up and Commercial Use of Biotechnology-derived Crops: Economic and Policy Considerations

DOI: https://doi.org/10.62300/bbfgg237

Task Force Chairs

David R. Gealy

United States Department of Agriculture– Agricultural Research Service, Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center, Stuttgart, Arkansas

Authors

Kent J. Bradford

Seed Biotechnology Center, Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis

Linda Hall

Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development/ University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada

Richard Hellmich

United States Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Research Service, Corn Insects and Crop Genetics Research Unit, and Department of Entomology, Iowa State University, Ames

Alan Raybould

Product Safety, Syngenta, Berkshire, United Kingdom

Jeffrey Wolt

Biosafety Institute for Genetically Modified Agricultural Products, Iowa State University, Ames

David Zilberman

Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of California, Berkeley

Abstract

This Issue Paper identifies the nature of gene flow and discusses the relatively limited situations in which it is likely to cause economic problems in the production of commercial biotech crops. The paper explains how gene flow relates to adventitious presence, describes the biological traits being imparted into biotech crops, summarizes present risk assessment and regulatory mechanisms, and discusses potential economic effects and policy and research ramifications of gene flow of commercial biotech crops.