Varieties of drought-tolerant oilseed rape and maize were already
\nbeing tested in field trials in the United States, the report quoted
\nDavid Dennis, the chief executive of Performance Plants Incorporated
\nin Kingston, Ontario, as saying. Dennis claimed the new varieties can
\nincrease yield by 40% when the plants are most water-stressed.<\/p>\n
Global warming is predicted to make arable land in developing
\ncountries less productive or unusable. GM advocates claim
\ndrought-resistant crops could play an important role in adapting to
\nthese new challenges.<\/p>\n
However, opponents of GM crops say the scientists’ claims are
\nexaggerated. "We would take any claims that these crops are just
\naround the corner with a large pinch of salt because we have heard it
\nall before," said Claire Oxborrow of Friends of the Earth.<\/p>\n