This report that, following the expansion in the use of GM-based ‘Roundup Ready’ crops, the widely used crop herbicide is losing weed resistance doesn’t have any obvious implications for the GM debate other than to remind us that biological systems are complex and hard to manage.

It’s a useful rule, though that, if a policy piece discussing the use of herbicides and pesticides doesn’t discuss or refer to the implications of resistance, it should be treated with caution. I’ll have more to say on this later.

Update As Jim Birch points out, the NYT headline should have read “Weeds are gaining resistance to widely used herbicides”. Embarrassing! This will teach me to rely on the “Blog This!’ default instead of writing in my own link!