A majority of farmers in Michigan
have been using genetically modified sugar beet seeds for about two years. Since
then, they've seen crop production increase by nearly 20 percent.
The modified seeds contain a gene that
protects beets from herbicides and other chemicals. Environmental and food
safety groups have expressed concern over the practice.
Bob Boehm of the Michigan Farm Bureau
says this could end up hurting Michigan,
which is one of the nation's leading producers of sugar beets.
"We
want to make sure that that technology is available. It's safe, it's been
utilized for over ten years in soybeans and corn and other commodities, and we
can see the benefits in sugar beets and would like to have the opportunity to
continue to use that technology in the sugar beet seed," Boehm says.
Lawmakers and members of the
agriculture industry will meet again later this month to discuss the issue.
