Last week Monsanto tried to cheer itself up by having published a report it had commissioned on 9 years of GM farming, which claimed GM crops had been an unmitigated success.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=5825
By way of retort, here's our take on land agent Mark Griffith's amazing collection of links to articles and reports on the farming problems with GM crops - 1996-2005.
Mark's page is an amazing resource for anyone following agronomic issues. Here's just a small selection of some of the more recent items on the page.
NB just about all these come from the farming press, USDA data and reports, scientific research, etc.
JUST KEEP SCANNING DOWN THE PAGE!
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Will GM crops deliver benefits to farmers?
http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/gmagric.htm
MIXED OR NEGATIVE FINANCIAL IMPACTS
"Perhaps the biggest issue raised by these results is how to explain the rapid adoption of GE crops when farm financial impacts appear to be mixed or even negative."
'The Adoption of Bioengineered Crops'
US Department of Agriculture Report, May 2002
http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/usdagmeconomics.htm
Glyphosate resistance is spreading as the extensive use of Roundup Ready crops continues:
WHAT'S SCARY IS IT'S SPREADING SO FAST
"The [glyphosate] resistant type [of horseweed] was first discovered in Delaware in 2000. In 2001, it was found in western Tennessee. In 2002, it was found in Missouri and Arkansas. What's scary is exactly a year after discovery it was already widespread in Delaware. The same pattern was seen in Tennessee. The first time I started seeing it while driving around Missouri was in 2003. The last couple of years, phone calls to me on this weed have been heavy."
Andy Kendig, Missouri Extension weed specialist
No quick cures for glyphosate-resistant weeds
Delta Farm Press, 27 September 2005
http://deltafarmpress.com/news/050927-glyphosate-resistant/
MAJOR YIELD LOSSES AND HARVEST HEADACHES
"Palmer pigweed that is not killed by glyphosate will cause major yield losses and harvest headaches for soybean, cotton and other row crop producers....It is essential to use more than one herbicidal mode of action on your fields."
Professor Tom Mueller, University of Tennessee weed scientist
Tennessee Researchers Confirm Glyphosate-Resistant Pigweed
Business Journal, 24 September 2005
http://bjournal.com/2005/content/article_views.php?ID=756&Author=56
MORE PROBLEMS THAN RR HORSEWEED
"We have been watching these fields since first receiving reports in 2004 of Palmer pigweed not killed by Roundup. Our results last year indicated a very small number of pigweed plants survived our applications, but this year Palmer pigweeds at both locations survived a full 22 ounces of Roundup WeatherMax... we expect resistant Palmer pigweed will pose more problems for producers than horseweed."
Larry Steckel, University of Tennessee Extension weed specialist
Tennessee Researchers Confirm Glyphosate-Resistant Pigweed
Business Journal, 24 September 2005
http://bjournal.com/2005/content/article_views.php?ID=756&Author=56
THE FARMERS FOLLOWED INSTRUCTIONS
"The fields were in continuous, Roundup Ready cotton for many years - at least from the late 1990s on. Roundup was the primary weed control on them although there have been some post-directed chemistries on them as well.... Were rates and sprayings properly applied?... To my knowledge, correct, full-label rates were used... I just did an informal survey of some retailers and, in the last year, they believe around 90 percent of our cotton had a pre-emerge (herbicide) put on. Primarily, the reason for that was control of glyphosate-resistant horseweed."
Larry Steckel, University of Tennessee Extension weed scientist
Glyphosate-tolerant pigweed confirmed in West Tennessee
Delta Farm Press, 23 September 2005
http://deltafarmpress.com/news/050923-tolerant-pigweed/
INFERIOR YIELDS FROM GM MAIZE
A controlled trial has found inferior grain yields from Bt maize compared with their non-GM genetic counterparts (Field Crops Research 93: 199-21, September 14, 2005): "There are concerns over the economic benefits of corn (Zea mays L.) hybrids with the Bt trait... We found that some of the Bt hybrids took 2 3 additional days to reach silking and maturity, and produced a similar or up to 12% lower grain yields with 3 5% higher grain moisture at maturity, in comparison with their non-Bt counterpart."
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_aset=V-WA-A-W-B-MsSAYZW-UUW-U-AAWDAWCAEU-AAWVDUCEEU-WEVUVCCEE-B-U&_rdoc=1&_fmt=summary&_udi=B6T6M-4DRBBYB-1&_coverDate=09%2F14%2F2005&_cdi=5034&_orig=search&_st=13&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=e231f9b9e88c1e006a9f43cfed840de3
SEED YIELDS DOWN
Seed yields are down from US GM cotton varieties (Delta Farm Press 18 August 2005):
"Cottonseed removed in the ginning process represents a significant source of revenue to ginners, and reduced seed tonnage from newer genetically modified varieties has been cutting into their bottom line..."
http://deltafarmpress.com/news/050818-cottonseed-weight/
MORE RR HORSEWEED
Roundup-Ready cotton is accelerating the emergence of glyphosate-resistant horseweed in the US (Associated Press, 9 August 2005):
"First found in Delaware in 2000, glyphosate-resistant horseweed has since been found in 10 other states in the East and South. Pete Christensen said he watched his costs soar as the most popular herbicide became increasingly powerless to stop the weeds... Systems like Monsanto's Roundup-Ready crops, which promise an easy, one-chemical solution to the age-old problem of weed control, only work for a short time..."
http://www.sgvtribune.com/Stories/0,1413,205~24512~3003075,00.html
GM COTTON BANNED BECAUSE OF LOSSES
The Indian state of Andhra Pradesh has banned the sale of Monsanto's transgenic Bt cotton following its poor agronomic performance (India News, Hyderabad, May 6 2005): "Studies have shown that farmers who went for Bt [GM] cotton suffered more losses compared to those who used conventional seeds. While Bt cotton seeds gave a yield of 535 kg per acre, it was around 650 kg per acre from conventional seeds."
http://news.webindia123.com/news/showdetails.asp?id=81018&cat=India
GM SOY GROWERS SUFFER BIGGER LOSSES
Recent experience in Brazil has confirmed previous evidence* that GM soya is much more vulnerable to yield loss than conventional varieties in drought conditions (IPS News via NewsEdge Corporation 4 April 2005): "Drought in southern Brazil has reduced this year's important soybean harvest dramatically in Rio Grande do Sul state... Genetically modified (GM) soy, which accounts for the majority of soybean production in the southern state, suffered greater losses than conventional soy varieties, according to reports by local growers."
http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/BrazilSoyaDrought.htm
* http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/Monsanto-RR-Soy-Cracking.htm
MARKET DOMINANCE = FARMER EXPLOITATION?
Having gained near total dominance in some seed markets there are proposals by Monsanto to dramatically increase the charges for its technology, fueling previous concerns that market dominance would lead to farmer exploitation (Farmers Weekly, 18 February 2005): "Seed and technology fees for genetically modified crops are on the up in the USA, as companies continue to invest in next generation traits. Some producers are expecting Monsanto's technology fees to rise 75% this season, as the firm seeks to recoup costs... But with weed populations shifting to species able to resist the total herbicide the company needs to be careful not to price the technology out of the market, stresses North Carolina consultant Billy McLawhorn."
http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/Monsantotechnologyfees.htm
* http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/gmagric.htm#Vogel
GM INCREASES PESTICIDE USE
A new study reveals that while US pesticide use dropped during the three first years of commercial GM crop cultivation, it has increased sharply thereafter according to a new study highlighted by the UK's Farmers Weekly Interactive 28 October 2004: "GM maize, soybeans and cotton have led to a 55,000 tonnes increased in pesticide use since 1996... The study is based on official US Department of Agriculture data on pesticide use over 670m acres of GM maize, soya and cotton."
http://www.fwi.co.uk/article.asp?con=16456&sec=22&hier=22
RR MAIZE VOLUNTEERS FOR NEIGHBOURS
Volunteer Roundup-Ready maize is now becoming a problem for RR soyabean farmers in the US, even for those who have never planted RR maize according to an Illinois farmer in Farmers Weekly, August 27- September 2, 2004: "I've sprayed my Roundup beans twice this summer and I can see maize still growing in the fields..... You know how life is supposed to go full circle? I'm back to hand-hoeing maize out of soyabean fields.... I got it [RR maize] and I never bought it!"
http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/rrvolunteercorn.htm
GM COTTON PROBLEMS IN CHINA
China has been a major adopter of Bt cotton but after several years of production doubts are now emerging about its sustainability (Reuters, 28 May 2004): "Liu Xiaofeng, a researcher in Henan, China's number two cotton producing province, was cited as telling Reuters that while Bt cotton had brought advantages to farmers -- including a 60 percent drop in pesticide use -- the GMO insect resistant cotton also posed challenges. Liu was cited as saying earlier this week that cotton bollworm is developing resistance and will be no longer susceptible to the transgenic Bt cotton after 20-30 generations, or six to seven years".
GM Cotton Damages Environment In China - Xinhuanet report
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2002-06/03/content_422594.htm
ARGENTINA'S BITTER HARVEST
Weed control and soil fertility problems are emerging in Argentina following the widespread planting of GM soy... (New Scientist, 17 April 2004):
"Argentina faces big agronomic problems that it has neither the resources nor the expertise to solve."
http://www.btinternet.com/~nlpwessex/Documents/ArgentinaGMsoyasustainability.htm
Argentina's GM Woe
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/AGMW.php
USDA DATA SHOWS GM = MORE PESTICIDES
USDA data shows GM crops generally do not reduce pesticide use (Guardian 8 January 2004):
"Eight years of planting genetically modified maize, cotton and soya beans in the US has significantly increased the amount of herbicides and pesticides used, according to a US report which could influence the British government over whether to let GM crops be grown."
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=2206
Impacts of Genetically Engineered Crops on Pesticide Use in the United States: The First Eight Years
http://www.biotech-info.net/technicalpaper6.html