Can crop genomic technologies really impact commercial crop protection?
John E. Hamer Paradigm Genetics Inc. RTP, North Carolina 27709-4528. The vast majority of genome initiatives over the past decade have been rationalized to funding agencies and governments as having direct impacts on human health. For agriculture the rationale has been less compelling. With a heavily subsidized northern hemisphere farm industry and continued European angst over genetically-modified crops, one may question the value of funding large scale genomic research for northern hemisphere agriculture. With European approval of commercial scale planting of GMO crops unlikely in the foreseeable future, crop protection chemicals will continue to be the major way that pests are controlled on crops. Although a $27B industry, there has been a surprising shortage of innovation in the form of newer and safer active ingredients. For example less that 30 modes of action are known for fungicides and herbicides combined. Genomic scale approaches to crop protection have the potential to revol
