Many readers of this blog will probably remember the article by Danny Hakim (and the associated infographics) that ran in the New York Times back in October about the "broken promises" of GMOs. The article prompted some cheers and some legitimate criticisms.

After that article came out, one thing bugged me a bit. We have scores of experimental studies showing GMOs (particularly the Bt varieties) increase observed yield, so why don't we see a pronounced effect on aggregate, national yield trends? At about the same time these thoughts were swirling around in my head, I received a note from Jesse Tack at Kansas State University asking the same. As it turns out, we weren't the first to wonder about this. The most recent, 2016, National Academies report on GMOs noted the following: