More than half the sugar produced in the U.S. is derived from the sugar beet, a vegetable grown from a genetically modified seed. The reason why sugar beet farmers use these seeds is because the crops are better for their farms; the U.S. Beet Sugar Association identified more than two dozen environmental benefits to genetically modified sugar beets such as needing fewer chemicals and less water to grow. "Using GM sugar beet seed means that we use less hand labor and tractor passes to remove the weeds," said Suzanne Rutherford, a California sugar beet farmer. "We actually use less herbicide now. Genetically modified seed has put us on a path to sustainability."