Just when you thought we don't need new crop technology: Billions at risk from wheat super-blight

Billions at risk from wheat super-blight
New Scientist.
03 April 2007

A formidable disease is on its way and almost nobody has heard of it. Ug99 is a virulent strain of black stem rust fungus that attacks wheat plants - a crop that feeds more people than any other food source on Earth. Since the Green Revolution of the 1960s, farmers have been successfully growing disease-resistant wheat varieties. But Ug99 has evolved. There are now precious few wheat crops anywhere that are resistant to it. The blight has already crossed from Africa into Asia and there are fears it will spread further into regions where a billion people depend on wheat for their survival...


Of course we can always wait an extra five-years for imaginary safety reasons before acting to protect crops and let millions starve. But is that the way to manage risk wisely?