University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee researchers trying to keep GMO switchgrass out of the market

March 6, 2017 |

In Wisconsin, researchers from the University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee are tackling the main obstacle of keeping genetically modified switchgrass off the commercial market. It’s the possibility that lab-engineered genes could escape human control by mixing with genes of wild-growing grasses, which might interrupt natural processes in unpredictable ways.

Genetically modified tomatoes were first approved for human consumption in 1994, but food crops are typically short-lived and tightly managed. Grasses are less domesticated and live a long time, heightening the concern about genetic contamination.

Category: Research

Thank you for visting the Digest.