GMO Myths and Truths

1.1 Myth: Genetic engineering is just an extension of
natural breeding
Truth: Genetic engineering is different from
natural breeding and poses special risks
Myth at a glance
GMO proponents claim that genetic engineering is just an extension
of natural plant breeding. But genetic engineering is technically and
conceptually different from natural breeding and entails different risks. The
difference is recognized in national and international laws.
GMO proponents claim that genetic engineering is just an extension of natural plant
breeding. They say that genetically modified (GM) crops are no different from naturally bred
crops, apart from the deliberately inserted foreign GM gene (transgene) and the protein it is
intended to make.
But GM is technically and conceptually different from natural breeding and poses different
risks. This fact is recognized in national and international laws and agreements on
genetically modified organisms (GMOs). For example, European law defines a GMO as
an organism in which “the genetic material has been altered in a way that does not occur
naturally by mating and/or natural recombination” and requires the risks of each GMO to be
assessed. 1
The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, 2 an international agreement signed by 166
governments worldwide that seeks to protect biological diversity from the risks posed by
GM technology, and the United Nations food safety body, Codex Alimentarius, agree that
GM differs from conventional breeding and that safety assessments should be required
before GM organisms are used in food or released into the environment. 3,4
In 1999 the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority ruled that Monsanto’s advertisements
about GM foods and crops were misleading in claiming that genetic modification was an
extension of traditional breeding methods. 5
Today, few public comment forums on GM crops and foods are complete without claims
from GMO promoters to the effect that “We’ve been genetically modifying crops for
millennia”. This conveys essentially the same message as Monsanto’s advertisements and
seems to have the same intent: to reassure the public that nothing radical or new is being
done to their food. This message is scientifically inaccurate and misleading.
Indeed, industry tries to play both sides in its presentation of GMOs. It tells patent offices
worldwide that the GM process is totally different from natural breeding and so the
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