I, Farm Boy! Hybrids Are Not GMOs!

There is this great confusion regarding “Hybrids” and “GMOs” with some saying that hybrids are also genetically modified.

Well, the answer is “Hybrids” are not GMOs since these are produced through a natural cross-breeding process.

Sorghum Seed Producer Coby Kriegshauzer whose family owns Scott Seed Company in Hereford, Texas explained during my visit Wednesday that to produce Hybrid Sorghum Seeds, they plant male and female Sorghum.

The cross-breeding of two varieties is aimed at producing a new line which would carry the good traits of both parents.

When I visited the nursery in Amarillo, Texas, plant breeder Chuck Cielencki showed me a new hybrid which carried more leaves for silage and grains for feeds.

To produce that, they crossed a variety with a lot of leaves with a variety that carried many grains but fewer leaves.

To produce the hybrids, they plant the males and females side by side.

For every 20 rows of Female Sorghum, they plant one row of Male Sorghum.

During the flowering period, the strong Texas wind blows the pollen from the Male Sorghum to fertilize the females.

As soon as the grains in the Female Sorghum are mature, the Male Sorghum stalks are cut, leaving the females to be harvested yielding the “Hybrid Seeds.”

The “GMO” seeds on the other is an improvement of a variety through a process in the laboratory which involves the introduction of a desired gene from another plant or the elimination of an undesired gene through a method called CRISPR gene editing.

Examples of a GMO which received desired genes is the Golden Rice which received a gene that carries a yellow pigmentation.

The other is the Stevia whose genes which give the tangy and bitter taste were eliminated.

So there, I hope this settles the issue.

#FarmIsTheBestClassroom!

(Video by Ariane Laus.)