4 ms·

a lot of so-called organic produce is the product of radiation-induced mutation Citation needed for that.

Symmetry 9y ago
It's totally true. Efforts to produce shorter stemmed wheat that were also resistant to rust[1] used induced mutations from x-rays in some cases. So if you feel like you want wheat that's been mutated to be a good crop via good old fashioned solar UV rays rather than scary artificial cyclotron x-rays you should look for heirloom crops rather than organics. [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheat_leaf_rust https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheat_leaf_rust
- codeulike 9y ago
  The article you quote describes how resistance came about via selective breeding and other such mundane techniques and makes no mention of x-rays. Comment above mine was specifically saying that radiation based mutation is widespread in organic agriculture.
  - Symmetry 9y ago
    Sorry, I just put in the link because I figured people might be confused by me saying "rust" without it. I'm basing my comments on reading The Wizard and the Prophet which gets into the nuts and bolts of the Green Revolution and the various research programs involved. I don't have an online source on hand better than what either of us could Google.
n4r9 9y ago
See the cited Wikipedia page, which in turn cites a large number of published papers. It's not a controversial fact.
- codeulike 9y ago
  The cited page explains about radiation mutation and lists some of the varieties created, apart from noting that organic standards don't forbid their use it doesn't offer much info on how widespread use is in organic agriculture. That's the bit that needs the citation.
bluntfang 9y ago
I mean, technically speaking, aren't we all the product of radiation-induced mutation?
dekhn 9y ago
Nearly all modern cultivars results from the Green Revolution (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Revolution https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Revolution) and I think typical organic cultivars are derived from those experiements (otherwise, their yields would be too low to be economic). Organic rules don't require that cultivars using in organics are free of this technique. What level of citation are you seeking? Like, a science paper showing that at least one organic cultivar was derived from mutation breeding? A historically verified cultivar history?
- codeulike 9y ago
  The article you quote largely defines The Green Revolution as being the use of pesticides, fertilizers and selective breeding. It makes no mention of radiation based mutation. Comment above mine was specifically saying that radiation based mutation is widespread in organic agriculture.

It's totally true. Efforts to produce shorter stemmed wheat that were also resistant to rust[1] used induced mutations from x-rays in some cases. So if you feel like you want wheat that's been mutated to be a good crop via good old fashioned solar UV rays rather than scary artificial cyclotron x-rays you should look for heirloom crops rather than organics. [1]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheat_leaf_rust https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheat_leaf_rust

codeulike 9y ago
The article you quote describes how resistance came about via selective breeding and other such mundane techniques and makes no mention of x-rays. Comment above mine was specifically saying that radiation based mutation is widespread in organic agriculture.
- Symmetry 9y ago
  Sorry, I just put in the link because I figured people might be confused by me saying "rust" without it. I'm basing my comments on reading The Wizard and the Prophet which gets into the nuts and bolts of the Green Revolution and the various research programs involved. I don't have an online source on hand better than what either of us could Google.

n4r9 9y ago

See the cited Wikipedia page, which in turn cites a large number of published papers. It's not a controversial fact.

codeulike 9y ago
The cited page explains about radiation mutation and lists some of the varieties created, apart from noting that organic standards don't forbid their use it doesn't offer much info on how widespread use is in organic agriculture. That's the bit that needs the citation.

bluntfang 9y ago

I mean, technically speaking, aren't we all the product of radiation-induced mutation?

dekhn 9y ago

Nearly all modern cultivars results from the Green Revolution (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Revolution https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Revolution) and I think typical organic cultivars are derived from those experiements (otherwise, their yields would be too low to be economic). Organic rules don't require that cultivars using in organics are free of this technique. What level of citation are you seeking? Like, a science paper showing that at least one organic cultivar was derived from mutation breeding? A historically verified cultivar history?

codeulike 9y ago
The article you quote largely defines The Green Revolution as being the use of pesticides, fertilizers and selective breeding. It makes no mention of radiation based mutation. Comment above mine was specifically saying that radiation based mutation is widespread in organic agriculture.