Perceptions of plant breeding methods–from ‘phenotypic selection’ to ‘genetic modification’ and ‘new breeding technologies’

Abstract

Plant breeding has been closely aligned with the development of civilisations and continues to be important for the supply of nutritious food and a key factor in reducing poverty and hunger. Plant breeding uses a range of techniques for both expanding and exploiting the genetic potential of plants. However, some techniques are deemed higher risk than others despite the end products of both processes at times being indistinguishable. While it is considered that the domestication of some plant species began over 10,000 years ago, it is only in the last 100 years or so that modern plant breeding has been used to develop thousands of cultivars in a range of plant species for food, feed, and recreation. In the last 25 years, genetic modification and, more recently, New Breeding Technologies have been used to introduce new variations into important plant species. This has resulted in mistrust and suspicion, and a range of regulatory systems. Product-based and process-based regulatory systems differ in the information required for decision-making. Methods used for the development and manipulation of plant traits are reviewed in an attempt to understand the reasons why some are deemed more acceptable than others.