Genetically Modified Corn Makes Cents

Corn Field. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Researchers from the University of Minnesota have released a study showing that genetically modified (GM) corn crops have a notable economic benefit for farmers. GM corn is designed to kill the european corn borer, a bug that eats the corn plants. By killing the insect, the GM plants actually help non-modified corn crops. The combined affect on both types of corn adds up to a decrease in losses for farmer's whether they plant the more expensive GM seeds or not.

The study is the first documented evidence that genetically modified crops can help farmer's make money, even though initially they are more expensive to plant. It is a good indication that a mixture of GM and regular crops are likely to be pursed in the US. 

The BBC article: GM crops bring cash harvest to non-GM varieties

The New York Times also recently ran an interesting article (After Growth, Fortunes Turn for Monsanto) about a down turn in profits for Monsanto, the most well known of the GM companies. Monsanto has been losing money on their newest type of GM corn, in addition to other products because farmer's just aren't buying them as the company had predicted.