A new type of wheat engineered to withstand climate change is being commercially grown for the first time, as harvests in some areas decline because of environmental changes. Wheat yields have fallen in recent years in Argentina because of lower rainfall, but farmers in the country —one of the world’s top-ten wheat exporters — can now sow a variety that has been genetically modified to be drought-resistant. The move is likely to be controversial because of objections to genetically engineered crops, but some scientists see it as crucial to avoiding food shortages.
“Approval of our wheat represents a milestone,” says Federico Trucco, the chief executive of Bioceres, the company that developed the drought-resistant crop. “Now we must go out and convince people that this is
