To a certain extent, Man has genetically modified all crops from their original wild state by domestication, selection and controlled breeding. Compared with the unknown consequences of transgenic crops, where genes from an organism are transferred into another organism or species foreign to it, these methods have been quite benign. However, feeding mammalian by products to ruminants, believed to be the source of Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, indicates that human interventions are not without risk.

In October 2007, the Balearic Parliament passed a law in declaring the Islands to be an area free from transgenic or genetically modified crops and a Biosecurity Commission was established to regulate the existence of this type of crop. Unfortunately their detection is difficult. Numerous samples need to be taken to ensure there are no false negatives.