People Behind the Seeds: Breeders
All of our food crops are the result of interaction between plants and humans over millennia. Few exist in the wild. Corn, arguably the greatest achievement in plant breeding, originated with a wild grass carrying a small seedhead like the one at left, with each seed wrapped in a hard case. Native Mexican farmers domesticated that wild grain. By 2500 years ago they had already reshaped it by selection into corn similar to those today.
Today, many farmers, seed-savers, and breeders around the world still work with plants in the traditional way--crossing related varieties and selecting for desirable traits. This ancient process is very different from the laboratory-based processes involved in making GMOs. For a fuller explanation of the terms and issues involved, you can refer to my post here.
The farmers/plant breeders below have given the world new open-pollinated (heirloom-type) varieties. If our agriculture and our food supply are to adapt to the changing world, continued selection and visionary breeding will be important to our survival.
Today, many farmers, seed-savers, and breeders around the world still work with plants in the traditional way--crossing related varieties and selecting for desirable traits. This ancient process is very different from the laboratory-based processes involved in making GMOs. For a fuller explanation of the terms and issues involved, you can refer to my post here.
The farmers/plant breeders below have given the world new open-pollinated (heirloom-type) varieties. If our agriculture and our food supply are to adapt to the changing world, continued selection and visionary breeding will be important to our survival.
