@strypey @Sandra @selea No one knows what the costs will be if unless you're talking about something specific.. You would have to assess each organism on a case-by case basis. I don't see any intrinsic risk with genetic engineering. Microbiologists insert genes into E.coli all the time to make more copies of them.

@strypey @selea I’m not saying that there are no risks in any genetically modified foods, I’m just saying that not all modifications have significant risks.. e.g. genetically engineered microbes have been used to make “non animal rennet” for 30 years without any problem. To give a non-food related example, there is some risk involved in gain of function research in pathogens and some people are opposed to it, but there’s virtually no risk in using E.coli for molecular cloning and no one is bothered by it. They’re both genetic engineering.

@strypey @Sandra @selea I think biotechnology has a long way to go but eventually there will be C4 rice and other crops with much higher yield, higher water use efficiency and higher nutrient use efficiency