What is a bio-tech crop?

Answer 1

A bio-tech crop simply means the crop has had its genetic code artificially altered for some purpose. Usually, this genetic engineering is intended to make the crop easier to grow in more hostile conditions, or to provide nutrients it would not otherwise provide in its natural, unengineered state. A number of domesticated crops have been genetically altered over the years including rice, corn, wheat and soybeans.

Although genetically engineering plants is a relatively new science, the age old art of plant domestication itself is a form of genetic manipulation, albeit a slow one. Whenever the first farmers began to selectively raise different plants based on their phylogeny (physical expression of an organism's genetic code) in order to increase their productivity, hardiness or flavor, what they were doing, in effect, was altering their genology (genetic coding) in the process. So, in a sense, all domesticated crops (and animals) can be classified as genetically engineered "bio-tech".

There is a debate across the globe as to whether intentionally altering a plant's genetic code, particularly to produce something natural selection never could, is a good thing or a bad thing. Opponents claim that if such crops were to be released into the world, they might quickly eliminate their non-bio-tech relatives, possibly causing the extinction of a necessary global resource and leading to widespread famine and social instability. Propnents of genetically engineered bio-tech crops, on the other hand, discount the danger posed by these products, claiming humanity has been doing this for centuries without any harm.

Only time will tell which of these positions is correct.