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Does it matter if genes do escape?
It depends on the nature of the trait given to them. Crops tolerant to droughts or high salt concentrations could become invasive and out-compete native plants if they can produce fertile offspring with their wild relatives. Plants given genes for weedkiller resistance could breed with wild relatives and produce weeds that are difficult to control on farmland. But research so far indicates that these hybrids are not strong enough to out-compete wild relatives.