Love them or loathe them genetically modified (GM) crops and food are a global fact of life. For years the debate on them here has been largely academic, because decisions about what can and cannot be grown are down to the European Commission. This means the UK government has not had to take a position although it has generally been more positive than others in the EU, including France and Germany. However with Brexit the government will no longer be able to hide behind Brussels. Instead it will have to decide a policy for the UK.
The DEFRA Secretary, Michael Gove, who is driving agricultural policy is certainly delivering mixed messages. He says he wants the UK to gain from having a technically efficient, progressive farming industry. At the same time he is promising a green Brexit, and the world’s highest animal welfare standards. These are not necessarily mutually exclusive, but that is how they are seen by the general public. A farming industry embracing technology, including GM, can be green but that is not how controversial technologies are seen. The decisions taken will have major and long term implications for agriculture. If the government opts to be radical over GM it would be controversial with a lot of farmers, and certainly with the green lobby. No matter what the science may say, this is an emotional argument that would be difficult to win. If the UK broke away from years of stalemate in Brussels over GM crops, it would be an all but impossible task to secure a deal to sell food into the EU-27 single market. These are big issues for the industry, and to date there is no evidence they are even on the government’s radar.
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