TWN Biotechnology & Biosafety Series no.  12
http://www.twnside.org.sg/title2/biosafety/bio12.htm

Genetically  Engineered Backslide: The Impact of Glyphosate-Resistant 
Palmer Pigweed on  Agriculture in the United States

By Edward Hammond

Publisher: TWN  (ISBN: 978-967-5412-27-1)

Year: 2010   No. of pages:  32

ABOUT THE BOOK

The widespread planting of “Roundup Ready” crops  that are genetically 
engineered to be resistant to the herbicide glyphosate has  led to the 
emergence of glyphosate-resistant weeds in fields in the United  States. Of these 
weeds, the species believed to pose the greatest threat to  agricultural 
productivity is Palmer amaranth – more commonly known as Palmer  pigweed – which 
has infested cotton and soya farms across the southern US and is  expected 
to spread to new areas and crops.

The approach currently adopted  to stem its spread has been to apply more 
and more herbicides, including  chemicals which are banned in many countries 
due to their toxicity. American  farmers have also had to revert to 
agricultural practices used in the 1980s and  earlier, such as hand weeding and 
increased tillage. Such measures will not only  push up farm production costs, 
but give rise to adverse environmental impacts as  well.

This paper examines the worrying extent and implications of the  Palmer 
pigweed problem, which the author says shows up the folly of US  agriculture’s 
increasing reliance on genetically modified herbicide-resistant  crops.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

EDWARD HAMMOND is an American policy  researcher who has worked on 
biodiversity, biological weapons and infectious  disease issues since 1994. From 
1999 to 2008 he directed the Sunshine Project,  an international 
non-governmental organization specializing in biological  weapons control. Hammond was 
Programme Officer for the Rural Advancement  Foundation International (now the 
ETC Group) from 1995 to 1999. He holds MS and  MA degrees from the 
University of Texas at Austin, USA, where he was an  Inter-American Foundation 
Masters  Fellow.

Contents
1.Introduction            2.The Emergence of Glyphosate Resistance         
3.What is Known About the Biology of Palmer  Pigweed Resistance
4.Chemical Storm: The Response to Glyphosate-Resistant  Pigweed
5.Costs to Manage Glyphosate-Resistant Pigweed
6.Impact of  Increased Tilling
7.Cloudy Outlook: 2,4-D- and Dicamba-Resistant  Cotton
8.Conclusion

Endnotes

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