A group of researchers were honored earlier this month with a Department of Agriculture award recognizing their work in developing a flood resistant strain of rice that could go a long way towards alleviating hunger in parts of Asia.
The scientists developed the rice strain using a technique called "precision breeding." The US Food Policy blog pointed out that this development is particularly exciting because the approach used no GMO technology.
I was especially interested to read this, because I'd read a book this past summer co-authored by one of the recipients, Pamela Ronald, which discussed the potential benefits of genetic engineering as a way to develop flood resistant strains of rice and fight hunger. Could it be that she was able to develop a beneficial strain without the use of this controversial technology?
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