[feet]

My assumption was that they were using the term as it's used in the medical field. A procedure such as a sonogram is noninvasive because it does not penetrate the organism or cause large changes or damage. Surgery is an invasive procedure.

My understanding of the comment is that breeding plants together and selecting for traits is noninvasive while going in and directly modifying the genome through enzymatic means is more invasive. I don't know if this is the correct way to use these terms in this circumstance, but this is my perspective.