GMWatch News Review archive

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WEEKLY WATCH number 271
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from Claire Robinson, WEEKLY WATCH editor
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Dear all:

Some great news this week: BASF is pulling out of research on GM potatoes (EUROPE). BASF's GM potatoes were responsible for one of just two GM trials in the U.K. last year.

Yet more research has come out showing the dangers of Roundup - the latest shows that it disrupts sex hormones (NEW RESEARCH). That's in addition to the recent findings that it causes cell death even at the residual levels found on Roundup-treated crops. It's time to tell your local authority, schools, gardeners etc. to just say no to Roundup.

Finally, look out for some important comment on Obama and the other G8 leaders' pledge of farm aid for poor nations (AFRICA + G8).

Claire <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>
www.gmwatch.org / www.lobbywatch.org

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CONTENTS
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NEW RESEARCH
LOBBYWATCH
AFRICA + G8
AUSTRALASIA
EUROPE
ASIA
THE AMERICAS

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NEW RESEARCH
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+ ROUNDUP DISRUPTS SEXUAL HORMONES
Roundup has been found in a new study to disrupt the action of androgens, the masculinizing hormones. The action and formation of the female hormone estrogen is also disrupted. This has been found to occur at very low levels, 800 times less than Roundup residues authorized in some GMOs for feed in United States. The research was done by Prof Seralini's group from CRIIGEN at the University of Caen, in collaboration with Prof Chagnon's group from the University of Dijon. This latest finding is in addition to the Seralini’s recent finding that Roundup causes cell damage and death at the residual levels found on Roundup-treated crops, such as soybeans, alfalfa and corn, or lawns and gardens.
http://www.grassrootsnetroots.org/articles/article_18503.cfm
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/07/08/DDO218FLRL.DTL&type=homeandgarden

+ PESTS COULD OVERCOME GM COTTON TOXINS
Laboratory studies suggest that it may be possible for insects to overcome two disparate toxins produced by GM cotton. In an attempt to prevent pests developing resistance to GM pest-resistant crops, the industry has been trying to create crops that produce multiple toxins that target the same pest. One of the most common multiple toxin crops on the market is cotton that produces two different Bt toxins, Cry1Ac and Cry2Ab. But when Bruce Tabashnik, an entomologist at the University of Arizona in Tucson, and colleagues tried to selectively breed insects that were resistant to Cry2Ab, they found that that some were also resistant to Cry1Ac. Tabashnik commented, "Evolution by insects is not something that scientists are going to stop."
http://www.nature.com/news/2009/090706/full/news.2009.629.html

+ STUDY CRITICIZES TESTING ON GMOs, PESTICIDES
A study conducted by researchers at the independent French research agency CRIIGEN calls into question the reliability of tests of the European Food Safety (EFSA) and the US FDA to assess the health risks of GMOs and pesticides. "Agricultural GM companies and evaluation committees systematically overlook the side effects of GMOs and pesticides. This is clearly illustrated by the EFSA and the US FDA, which evaluated the controversial GM maize varieties MON 863 and MON 810," said CRIIGEN.

It [the study] brings to light 'a significant underestimation of the initial signs of diseases like cancer and diseases of the hormonal, immune, nervous and reproductive systems, among others," said CRIIGEN. "We demand the systematic publication of the results of these tests, which we could only obtain on a case by case basis by taking legal action," said Gilles-Eric Seralini, one of eight authors.
http://actu.orange.fr/articles/sciences/Une-etude-met-en-cause-les-tests-menes-par-Bruxelles-sur-les-OGM.html

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LOBBYWATCH
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+ MONSANTO MAN TAYLOR RETURNS TO FDA AS FOOD CZAR
The US FDA has announced that Michael Taylor, a former Monsanto executive, had joined the agency as "senior advisor to the commissioner." The appointment marks Taylor's second tenure at the FDA. His previous tenure at the agency saw the formulation of its doctrine of substantial equivalence, which was published in a 1992 Federal Register notice for which he was responsible. Substantial equivalence provides the basis for the non-regulation of genetically modified (GM) foods. Taylor was also part of the FDA team that approved the use of Monsanto's GM growth hormone in cows.
http://www.grist.org/article/2009-07-08-monsanto-FDA-taylor/
http://www.spinprofiles.org/index.php/Michael_Taylor#History
Help expand Taylor's SpinProfile: contact claire.robinson AT spinprofiles.org

+ UK: TAKE ACTION: END SECRECY IN LOBBYING
An influential committee of MPs has told the UK government it's time to force all lobbyists to register their activities. This would mean we could see who's lobbying whom, and why. The government has said it will make a decision on whether or not to act this month. The minister in charge, Angela E. Smith, says she hasn't made her mind up. That means we've got a chance in the next two weeks to persuade the government to open up lobbying so we can see who they are talking to and what they are discussing.
TAKE ACTION: Tell the government it's time to end secrecy in lobbying
http://www.38degrees.org.uk/registerlobbyists7
The Alliance for Lobbying Transparency (www.lobbyingtransparency.org) will deliver the petition to the minister.

+ MONSANTO DIRECTOR TO OVERSEE PROGRAM FOR BIOSAFETY SYSTEMS
PBS is the Program for Biosafety Systems (PBS), managed by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID). It targets countries in Africa and Asia to help with the "responsible development and safe use of agricultural biotechnology". Who better to oversee it than a former Monsanto director? Dr Judy Chambers has been selected as the new Program for Biosafety Systems (PBS) director and will formally assume the role on July 27.
http://pbsblog.wordpress.com

+ SCIENTISTS RISK BECOMING “PR HACKS”
Calls for scientists to do a better job at framing research for public consumption threaten to turn scientists into "spin" merchants, says one expert. Dr Joan Leach from the University of Queensland made the comments in response to an article in Nature Biotechnology, which offers recommendations to improve the communication of science. The article, by social scientist Prof Matthew Nisbet of the American University in Washington DC and colleagues, says scientists need to use frames to communicate their messages. Frames are stories that help people understand how complex issues are relevant to their lives.
GMWatch comment: Unsurprisingly, Nisbet and colleagues are concerned with helping scientists promote GM in a way that the public will accept. Such discussions distract attention from the problems with GM technology and make out that the only thing that needs fixing is faulty public perception.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2009/07/03/2613817.htm

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AFRICA + G8
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+ U.S. PHILANTHROPY SHAPED BY THE GATES FOUNDATION
Behind the new three-year agricultural initiative announced by President Obama and other world leaders at the G8 lurks the Gates Foundation, according to Kristi Heim in the Seattle Times.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/home/

+ AFRICAN FARMERS' LETTER TO THE G8
The G8 are largely responsible for the current global food crisis and now they want to "solve" it with industrial export agriculture, GMOs, and chemical inputs. This open letter declares that it is time for Africans to take charge of agricultural and trade policies, and recognize family farming as the route to food sovereignty in Africa.
http://www.foodfirst.org/en/node/2488

+ G8 FOOD AID MIGHT DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD
Excellent commentaries from  Anuradha Mittal, Jill Richardson and others.
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/7/11/752325/-Obama-Is-Packaging-Screwing-The-Worlds-Hungry-as-Aid
http://www.fpif.org/fpiftxt/6239
http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/07/10-4
http://www.lavidalocavore.org/diary/2104/ghanaian-g8-food-aid-might-do-more-harm-than-good
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paula-crossfield/g8-promises-20-billion-in_b_229526.html
Jill Richardson: The problem is - and this is a big problem - the U.S. has no interest in taking the scientific, peer-reviewed, global consensus approach to global agriculture. We'd prefer to go a different route, one which has been dismissed by experts but embraced by multinational corporations. Read on”¦
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/7/11/752325/-Obama-Is-Packaging-Screwing-The-Worlds-Hungry-as-Aid

+ MONSANTO’S PHILANTHROPY
Monsanto took advantage of a drought in Malawi to donate its hybrid seed as aid. This put an end to farmer seed saving and gave the company a foothold in Africa. The company did all this in the name of philanthropy, through the Monsanto Fund, says an article in The Ecologist.
http://www.theecologist.org/blogs_and_comments/commentators/other_comments/276492/monsantos_philanthropy.html

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AUSTRALASIA
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+ NZ: GENETIC MODIFICATION REVISITED
An excellent speech by the head of New Zealand's Green Party at:
http://www.greens.org.nz/node/21440

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EUROPE
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+ BASF HALTS GM POTATO RESEARCH
BASF's has suspended research on GM potatoes, which was the only GM crop trialled in the UK last year. The firm is blaming continuing delays in getting EU approval for GM potatoes, saying approval of its GM starch variety remains "lost in the politics" of the EU. NFU deputy president and potato grower Meurig Raymond said, “The rest of the world is using GM to become more competitive and mitigate fungicide use and we're being left behind."
GMWatch comment: The NFU claim is total fantasy. Even in N. America there are no GM potatoes on the market - they had to be abandoned because of market rejection. And there are almost no disease resistant varieties on the market of any GM crops. On top of that, farmers in N. America have begun turning away from GM cotton and GM soy because of poor financial returns.
http://www.fwi.co.uk/Articles/2009/07/08/116528/basf-halts-gm-potato-research.html

+ EUROPEAN COMMISSION AGREES TO EXPLORE OPT-OUT PROPOSAL
The European Commission has agreed to draw up a list of options for further discussion after 11 countries urged that individual nations be allowed to opt out of growing GM crops.
http://www.foodproductiondaily.com/Quality-Safety/EC-agrees-to-explore-GM-opt-out-proposal

+ FRANCE REJECTS REPORT BY EU FOOD AGENCY
France has rejected a report by the European Union's food safety watchdog that said Monsanto’s MON810 maize was safe. In a joint statement, the French ecology and agriculture ministries said the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) had failed to take into account requests to change the way it evaluated the risk. France and five other EU members - Austria, Germany, Greece, Hungary and Luxembourg - have suspended sowing of MON810, invoking safeguard clauses on the grounds of potential environmental hazard.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gecpoGGp9SPYnFj9jGVZgRNXTv8g

+ TWO FORMER MONSANTO DIRECTORS SENTENCED
The French Supreme Court of Appeal has rejected the appeal by two former Directors of Asgrow France, a subsidiary of Monsanto, confirming their fines of 5,000 and 10,000 Euros for "placing GMOs on the market without authorization”. The consumer defence association UFC Que Choisir (What to Choose) had filed a civil lawsuit after analyses of American soya seeds stocks which Monsanto sold to an company in the town of Albi revealed the presence of GMOs.
http://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-actu/2009/07/01/01011-20090701FILWWW00478-mosanto-2-anciens-dirigeants-condamnes.php

+ GERMANY: CONSUMERS REWARD GM-FREE PRODUCTION
Dairy group FrieslandCampina (FC) introduced a line of GM-free fresh milk last fall under its Landliebe brand. GM-free means the cows have not been fed on GM animal feed. According to Michael Feller, CEO of Campina Germany, Landliebe milk sales increased during the first four months of 2009 amidst a generally receding market. The company says in the long run all Landliebe products will carry the "ohne Gentechnik" (GM-free) logo.
http://www.lz-net.de/news/topnews/pages/protected/show74202.htm
TAKE ACTION: Demand an end to the use of GM animal feed
http://www.bangmfood.org/stealth-gmos

+ WALES: GM-FREE ZONES TO PROTECT FARMERS
Welsh farm leaders have welcomed tough new proposals to tighten controls on GM crops. The Assembly Government wants GM-free zones in Wales and a ban on GM crops in national parks and SSSIs [Sites of Special Scientific Interest]. Also proposed is strict liability for GM crop growers, and a new voluntary industry-funded compensation scheme. The Assembly Government will even consider a statutory scheme. The Farmers Union of Wales (FUW) said it backed measures which protected growers of traditional crops from accidental GM contamination. FUW president Gareth Vaughan said the industry had invested heavily on added-value food products. "Going down the GMO route will quickly lead to us losing that competitive edge," he said. Rural affairs minister Elin Jones admitted she could not declare the whole of Wales GM-free for legal reasons - but policies would be as restrictive as possible.
http://www.dailypost.co.uk/farming-north-wales/farming-news/2009/07/02/gm-free-zones-to-protect-farmers-55578-24053650/
http://www.sourceuk.net/article/13/13387/wales_acts_to_protect_farmers_of_traditional__conventional_crops_from_gm_crops.htmllink
http://new.wales.gov.uk/topics/environmentcountryside/ecnewsevents/ralatestnews/ 090630gmcrops/?lang=en
http://www.farmersguardian.com/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=27261

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ASIA
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+ ILLEGAL GM COTTON SPREADS IN INDIA
In Gujarat, GM Herbicide Tolerant (HT) cotton is being illegally propagated, seeded and widely distributed for the third consecutive year, reports Aruna Rodrigues, the chief petitioner in the public interest lawsuit (PIL) on GM crops introduced before the Supreme Court. Aruna comments: “This situation proves that we have no effective regulation of GM crops in India, with the Regulators essentially promoting them.”

+ HAZARDOUS TECHNOLOGY REJECTED IN EUROPE BEING DUMPED IN INDIA
Two leading European geneticists have warned India against accepting GM crops/foods and termed it a technology that has been rejected in Europe and is now being dumped into India. Prof Gilles-Eric Seralini of the University of Caen, France and Prof Michael Antoniou of King's College, London presented papers in a 2-day workshop on "GM crops/food and Health Implications" organized by Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, Sustainet and Greenpeace India. Prof Seralini had earlier analysed, for the first time, Monsanto Mahyco's biosafety data on Bt brinjal and found that this novel organism is unsafe for human or animal consumption.
http://wearenotlabrats.blogspot.com/2009/07/press-release-hazardous-technology.html
http://anypursuit.com/news/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=403
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/sci-tech/india-shouldnt-accept-europe-rejected-gm-crop-scientists_100216328.html

+ DUPONT STOCK SLIDES AS GM CORN DELAYED
Regulatory delays in Asia have pushed back the rollout of one of DuPont's most important products in development, a GM weedkiller-resistant corn. DuPont had previously hoped for a wider commercial launch of Optimum GAT corn next year. The company said it was changing the schedule because regulatory approvals in Japan, Taiwan and Korea were taking longer than expected. DuPont stock prices slid because of the delay.
http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20090708/BUSINESS/907080321/1003/Launch+delayed+on+DuPont+s+corn+seed+product

+ PHILIPPINES: GROUPS SLAM REVIEW OF GM BAN
Members of the Negros Organic Agriculture Movement together with civil society groups, environmentalists and the Catholic Church have expressed their strong opposition to the move of "ill-advised" provincial government officials to review the GM ban in the province. "Banning the entry of genetically engineered or transgenic corn and other crops in the province is, for us, non negotiable," they said in a statement.
http://www.visayandailystar.com/2009/July/06/topstory4.htm

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THE AMERICAS
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+ MONSANTO - "WORLD'S MOST HATED CORPORATION"
The Organization for Competitive Markets will hold its annual conference on August 7 in St. Louis to discuss unfairness between farmers and ranchers and the corporations with which they do business. OCM Executive Director Fred Stokes said farmers and ranchers have to buy from monopolies, singling out Monsanto, who "gouge" their customers. He said they then have to sell to these large companies based on their corporate edicts. Stokes said the company uses aggressive methods against people. "They molest people," he said. "They're brutes." Stokes said the company sues "totally innocent people," and use intimidation so people will not infringe on their patent rights. He called Monsanto the "world's most hated corporation."
http://www.olneydailymail.com/news/x931217118/Group-focuses-ire-on-Monsanto
For OCM’s longstanding concerns over how Monsanto is driving up seed prices and devastating farmers and their communities, see:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/During-a-world-food-crisis-by-Linn-Cohen-Cole-080723-548.html

+ CANADIAN FARMERS OPPOSED TO GM WHEAT SURVEY
Canadian farmers oppose the introduction of GM wheat until market conditions change, a Canadian Wheat Board survey has found. Only 9 percent said GM wheat should be grown as soon as it's available, with the majority saying it shouldn't be grown until conditions are met such as proving benefits to farmers and demonstrating market demand. Nineteen percent said it should not be grown in Canada at all.
http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSTRE55O2Z620090625

+ GM FOOD PRODUCTION IN CUBA
Cuba’s Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) will soon be introducing GM crops on a commercial scale in Cuba. Agroecologist Fernando Funes Aguilar says that the vast majority of the population knows nothing about this because there has not been a national debate in Cuba about the production and consumption of GM foods. Aguilar analyzes Cuba's options and concludes that its best chance lies not with risky GM crops but with “agroecological” farming methods.
http://www.alainet.org/active/31391〈=es