Nigerian NGO concerned GM cassava is a “gateway” for other GM crops

In Nigeria, a local NGO has lashed out at attempts to carry out a controlled trial of GM cassava as a potential ethanol feedstock, saying that the move by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, (IITA) and Zurich, Switzerland-based ETHZ Laboratories was a sly way to open the door for other GM crops such as corn and cotton. The modification to the cassava is so that the roots lose less starch after harvesting to allow more flexibility in storage and handling before processing into ethanol.