In its mad bid to privatize and control the world’s agriculture and food supply with its patented biotech seeds and cushy revolving door within governmental regulatory agencies, Monsanto cannot be very happy with a recent Soil Association report that shows GM crops decrease yields, whether it’s cotton or soybeans or corn.
As reported in The Washington Post, the biotech industry immediately released yet another bought-and-paid-for report claiming totally opposite conclusions (some things don’t change just because the science is against you). The Soil Association report took a serious look at reality, something quite refreshing in this field. The material included among other citations:
• a 2007 study from Kansas State University that showed Roundup Ready soy has suffered “yield drag” since it was introduced, producing an average of 9-25% less per acre than conventional soy.
• a rigorous independent US study under controlled conditions demonstrating that Bt corn yields up to 12% less than conventional corn.
• an article in Nature Biotechnology reporting that Bt cotton doesn’t even express the engineered pesticide in 25% of some varieties sold under exclusive license.
The crop failures and their tragic effects on farmers in poorer nations may be a product of the technology itself according to some analysts.
US scientists have finally called for more access to biotech crop data so they can perform studies to assess environmental impacts of the technology as well. Indications are that herbicide resistance has increased herbicide usage (polluting land and water), led to pest immunity (with increased crop losses), creates “superweeds” from wild relatives that are hard to eradicate, and may even have something to do with massive die-offs of bees in recent years.
A quote from Michelle Marvier of Santa Clara University in the ag-dependent state of California pretty much sums up the situation -
“Since 1996 more than a billion acres have been planted with biotech crops in the U.S. We don’t really know what are the pros and cons of this important new agricultural technology.”
Huh. I thought these are just the sort of things USDA and the FDA were supposed to find out before the technology was deployed on such a massive scale. Who could have guessed that allowing corporate control of law, policy and regulatory oversight might lead to bad law, policy and regulatory oversight? Oops…
Bloomberg reported today that whatever killed the bees last year is back again this year, threatening some $15 billion worth of crops that depend on bees for pollination.
Honeybee Deaths Resume in U.S. Hives cites the USDA’s top honeybee researcher as saying that the effects of continuing Colony Collapse Disorder should become apparent by the end of the month, when growers will see how effective the pollination of California’s huge almond crop has been.
“Colony Collapse Disorder” is a fancy name for an unknown entity, since no one has been able to figure out what’s killing the bees. The bees that have been found (most just disappear) have devastated immune systems, but still no one knows what, exactly, they’re dying of. The US lost a quarter of all hives in 2006 and 2007, and may lose that much or more this year despite the importation of Australian bees to replenish the supply.
Some experts think a virus is responsible, others say that any illness could easily kill bees whose immune systems have been seriously compromised, so it’s whatever is attacking immune systems that is the real killer. Dead bees that remain in the hives are infected with a host of pathogens – “every known bee virus” according to UK’s The Independent newspaper – not just one. Some bees were carrying five or six viruses at the same time, along with fungal infections. That is more likely to be a pesticide or herbicide being used on the crops or on neighboring crops, though others claim it’s just stress.
Some experts in Europe, where Colony Collapse Disorder is hitting Germany hard, are concerned about pollen from genetically modified crops, many of which contain microbial toxins – pesticide – in every cell. If that turns out to be the issue, farmers may end up with restrictions on growing genetically engineered crops in regions where bee pollinated crops are also grown. Research demonstrating that the transgenes in GE crops have migrated to wild plants may make restrictions a moot point, however, and we’ll just have to come up with another way to pollinate crops.
Links:
Honeybee Deaths Resume in U.S. Hives
European Bees Also Taking a Nosedive – Perhaps GM Crops?
The Chicago Tribune reports this week that scientists at Loyola University have established that the pollen, leaves and other plant parts of corn engineered to kill the European corn borer with Bt toxins could endanger the American midwest’s aquatic ecosystems when washed into nearby streams.
When eaten by aquatic insects called caddisflies, the Bt toxin stunts growth and increases mortality. These insects are food for fish and amphibians in the ecosystem. The scientists reportedly ‘feel’ that such unanticipated effects of GE technology need to be investigated, but of course the EPA and USDA (and Monsanto) don’t feel that way at all.
It might be difficult to separate the effects of GE plant wastes from the general toxic overload caused by modern agribusiness mega-farming practices, which also cause death and deformity among aquatic life forms and amphibians in midwestern ecosystems. And while consumers at home and abroad have made it known that they do not wish to consume genetically engineered pesticides disguised as food, the new market for corn as ethanol fodder makes it unlikely that GM corn is going to be phased out any time soon.
Related Links:
Older farmers less likely to plant Bt corn
GM corn might affect ecosystems
Eat to Live: 1 million against GM food
Eat to Live: Agriculture inspectors chided