Bt: The lesson not learned
Science News reported 60-plus years ago how indiscriminate use of DDT ruined that chemical’s value: Now history seems to be repeating itself with Bt
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/337240/title/Bt_The_lesson_not_learned
I am not sure if this content remains free, so my apologies if you can’t access it.
As could be (was) predicted, resistance is springing up against the ‘miracle’ Bt genetically engineered biological pesticide. Like antibiotics (and the DDT mentioned in the article), human’s profligate use of the product has begun to render it useless. It seems ironic to me, though, that because of the way patents are granted, the holders of the intellectual rights are incentivised against trying to restrict any usage of the product as once it goes off patent their profits will crater, so they want to sell as much as they can before the patent expires.
