Faced with the enormous challenges of feeding a growing world population, coping with climate change and safeguarding precious oil and water resources, Crop Protection Association chief executive Dominic Dyer has called on organic industry leaders to stop demonising pesticides and GM crops.

Speaking at a Soil Association meeting in London on Thursday (3^rd December), Mr Dyer said global crop production would need access to all available tools and technologies in the years ahead, and could not afford to rule out particular approaches on the basis of dogmatic opposition.

“GM crops have brought many benefits to farmers and the environment, and the technology has been widely adopted by millions of growers, many in resource-poor regions of the developing world,” said Mr Dyer. “Fourteen years of consistent growth in the global GM crop area confirms that the technology offers advantages at the farm level.