"I think it's good, that it should be part of the package," said Mark Rosegrant, an environment and technology specialist with the International Food Policy Research Institute.
"It shouldn't be the only thing in the package. It is now showing quite a bit of potential in starting to address some of the long-term stresses, drought and heat. It improves yields in some of these very difficult environments."
But Noah Zerbe, an assistant professor of government and politics at Humboldt State University, said that genetically modified crops might not be appropriate for developing countries.
"You get fantastic yields if you're able to apply fertilizer and water at the right times, and herbicides to go along with that," Zerbe said. "Unfortunately, most African farmers, they can't afford these inputs."
The U.S. tried to introduce genetically modified crops to Africa in 2002, with mixed results. European Union opposition was part of the reason that several African nations balked at an offer of U.S. aid that included corn, some of which was genetically modified.
In the throes of a severe drought, Zambia rejected the U.S. aid altogether. Several other countries accepted the U.S. corn, but only after it was milled to prevent farmers from planting it and growing their own genetically modified corn.
The National Security Council's Price said the administration is working to persuade European nations to lift their objection to the use of such crops in Africa.
Rosegrant said that given current dire food shortages, new biosafety measures and negotiations with countries receiving aid could resolve such problems.
"There's evidence that those fears tend to be overblown," he said. "The crops they're exporting are not the crops that are genetically modified. It's a little too soon to tell, but it looks like there's some increasing acceptance because of the high food prices."
