It was only this month that France approved commercial production of its first genetically modified crop: a pest-resistant maize from Novartis, a Swiss drug and agricultural company.

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Orion Genomics hopes to start pulling in revenues next year from its proprietary method of sequencing, mapping and cloning agricultural genes--technology that can be used to improve crop yield, develop pest resistance or help plants survive drought, flooding and cold.

FORBES: Yes, there is a pulse

Aside from new varieties that have lower water requirements, pest- and disease-resistant gene-spliced crop varieties also make water use more efficient indirectly.

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But Allan Jennings, the director of the Agriculture Department's Office of Pest Management Policy, insists this year's crop of apples and produce that have been sprayed with the chemicals are safe.

CNN: pesticides