Opinions about the efficacy and safety of genetically modified wheat are as diverse as weeds in a North Dakota road ditch. Some see GM crops as the next wave of scientific progress in production agriculture. Others describe GM plants and animals as the precursors of “Frankenfoods,” a not-so-subtle reference to Mary Shelley’s horrific monster.

At this point in the development of GM crops, the truth lies somewhere in between. But the hype on both sides has

caused one biotech company to put on hold research into GM wheat. Monsanto announced a few days ago it was backing away from plans to develop spring wheat resistant to its Roundup herbicide. The news is important to North Dakota, the nation’s number one producer of high quality hard red

spring wheat and durum.

Opponents of GM wheat all but danced in the streets. But Monsanto made a business decision, if not a scientific one. Most farmers were not eager to jump on the GM wheat bandwagon because of market resistence to genetically modified crops. Without an export market (at least half of North Dakota’s wheat crop is exported) it made no sense to plant the stuff.

There’s irony in the cheering from GM opponents. They believe Roundupready wheat and other GM crops are fraught with unknowns. Yet, they are applauding an end to research. It seems their purpose is not to make known the unknowns, but to scuttle GM crop science.

The export picture for genetically modified crops and foods is changing. Just last week the European Union ended a six-year moratorium on GM sweetcorn, grown mostly in the United States. Also last week, the United Nations food agency confirmed the value of biotech crops to farmers in poor nations. The biggest problem, the U.N. said, is that GM technology has not spread fast enough to small farmers in those nations.

Make no mistake about it: GM technology will advance. That potentially benevolent genie has been out of the bottle for at least a decade. For example, some 60 percent of the soybean acreage in North Dakota is planted with GM seed. The percentage for corn in corn belt states is even higher.

GM research should continue on wheat. Especially on wheat. That research should be encouraged, even in the face of an anti-science ideology that

sometimes seems to motivate GM opponents. After all, if they were sincere about “unknowns,” they surely would want science to help them know. Forum editorials represent the opinion of Forum management and the newspaper’s Editorial Board