GMWatch News Review archive

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WEEKLY WATCH number 277
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from Claire Robinson, WEEKLY WATCH editor
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Dear all:

The Monsanto takeover of the Obama administration continues (see LOBBYWATCH). But another important victory has been scored in the US courts with a judge rejecting the USDA's approval of GM sugar beets (THE AMERICAS).

A GM whistleblower is going through the courts in Germany for distributing a pamphlet he authored on the links between pro-GM politicians, regulatory authorities, companies, lobbyists and research institutes in Germany (EUROPE). Please lend him your support by attending the trial if you can.

There's also some very good news from Germany with the release from prison of German beekeeper Michael Grolm (EUROPE).

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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LAST STAND - FOR OUR RICE
LOBBYWATCH
CORPORATE TAKEOVER
HEALTH RISKS
THE AMERICAS
ROUNDUP
ASIA
AFRICA
EUROPE
CONTAMINATION
COMPANY NEWS
CLONING

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LAST STAND - FOR OUR RICE!
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+ TAKE ACTION: SIGN THE PETITION!
In a matter of a few weeks a major EU decision - on whether genetically engineered (GM) rice can enter Europe - will be made that could set a dangerous precedent. It could mean that GM rice will begin to be commercially grown, not just in Europe, but in the US, Asia and all over the world. Keep GM rice from ending up on your dinner plate - sign the petition
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/genetic-engineering/hands-off-our-rice/hands-off-our-rice
http://bit.ly/11oLY
and please pass it on to friends and family. Every signature helps!
Need to explain to your family or friends why GM is a problem? Or not so sure yourself? Watch this great video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1H9WZGKQeYg
http://bit.ly/2Fyjc6

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LOBBYWATCH
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+ U.S.: MORE MONSANTO MEN JOIN OBAMA ADMINISTRATION
ROGER BEACHY: People were shocked when Obama appointed the heavily Monsanto-connected Tom Vilsack and Michael Taylor to key positions in his Administration - http://bit.ly/sSylm, but shock is now turning to anger and incredulity with the appointment of a former Monsanto Vice President to serve as the first director of a new federal agricultural research agency. Roger Beachy, founding President of the heavily Monsanto-funded Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St Louis, will head the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), a U.S. Department of Agriculture body which "will award competitive grants to fund research and technological innovations".
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11531:more-monsanto-men-joining-obama-administration
http://bit.ly/PV8UI
More on Beachy: http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/10452-more-on-gates-foundation-tie-up-with-monsanto-front
http://bit.ly/u86bE
ISLAM SIDDIQUI: The White House has also announced Islam A. Siddiqui, a Vice President with the agchem and biotech lobby group CropLife America (the organization that sent the First Lady a letter admonishing her for not using pesticides on the White House garden) as nominee for Chief Agricultural Negotiator, who works through the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to promote US crops and agricultural products abroad. As the agricultural commentator Tom Philpott commented, "This is a major coup for Big Ag. Ramming open foreign markets for our cheap food commodities and pricey ag inputs is critical to the industry's future profits - and perilous for global food security and the environment."
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11531:more-monsanto-men-joining-obama-administration
http://bit.ly/PV8UI

+ MONSANTO PLACE-MEN AT GATES FOUNDATION
The new appointments, particularly putting Beachy in charge of USDA agricultural research, has to be seen in the context of more Monsanto-linked place-men (notably former Monsanto exec Rob Horsch and former Beachy underling Lawrence Kent) controlling the agricultural research purse strings at the influential Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation:
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/10452-more-on-gates-foundation-tie-up-with-monsanto-front
http://bit.ly/u86bE

+ DEAD-END AGRICULTURE SAYS IT WILL FEED THE WORLD
A symposium on world hunger hosted by the new lobby group, the Global Harvest Initiative (GHI), placed the focus firmly on the need for more food, highlighting a projected "productivity gap" that will require a doubling of current world food output by 2050. GHI founding members are the massive grain processor and biofuels producer Archer Daniels Midland Company, agricultural equipment supplier John Deere, and GM (genetic modification) and chemicals giants Monsanto and DuPont. Timothy LaSalle, CEO of the Rodale Institute, says that missing from GHI's symposium was an honest assessment of the limits of dead-end chemical agriculture to play a leading role in actually feeding people. Also absent from the high-powered forum was a prominent role for what organic agriculture is already doing to meet the most important goals on the food-hunger-nutrition side of the problem.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11530:dead-end-agriculture-says-it-will-feed-the-world
http://bit.ly/15U2YE

+ WHY DO KEY GM ADVOCATES DENY CLIMATE CHANGE?
As the US continues to aggressively promote GMOs while dragging its heels on meaningful action on climate change, we return to the question of why so many GM advocates deny climate change. We have the low-down and links to detailed profiles.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11518:why-do-key-gm-advocates-deny-mainstream-scientific-opinion-on-climate-change
http://bit.ly/5hQaP

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CORPORATE TAKEOVER
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+ WHY I STILL OPPOSE GM CROPS NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBER
GM crops represent the final transfer of the collective farming wisdom of the human race into corporate hands, and doubts persist about their safety, says a perceptive article by Verlyn Klinkenborg, a member of the editorial board at the New York Times.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11519:why-i-still-oppose-gm-crops-nyt-editorial-board-member
http://bit.ly/Tw6RS

+ GM THREATENS THE EXISTENCE OF NON-GM FARMING
Thoughtful analysis by environmental biologist Kelly Bronson
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11522:analysis-of-organic-farmers-vs-monsanto-
http://bit.ly/iS247

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HEALTH RISKS
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+ WHEN EVERY MOUTHFUL IS A HEALTH RISK
A remarkably detailed review of Jeffrey Smith's books about the known dangers of GM foods, has been published in India's Business Standard. For the article and a link to information about Jeffrey's new DVD, "Everything You Have to Know about Dangerous GM Food":
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11533:when-every-mouthful-is-a-health-risk
http://bit.ly/wsq1y

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THE AMERICAS
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+ NON-GM SOY SUPPLY UP
GM advocates keep claiming Europe must accept more GM grains on the basis that otherwise the animal feed supply will run out. But this isn't true. It seems the proportion of non-GM soy in Brazil increased from 40% two years ago to 45% now - the exact opposite of what the lobbyists claim (pdf).
http://bit.ly/wxWVd

+ U.S.: JUDGE REJECTS APPROVAL OF GM SUGAR BEETS
A federal judge has ruled that the government failed to adequately assess the environmental impacts of GM sugar beets before approving the crop for cultivation in the United States. The decision could lead to a ban on the planting of the beets, which have been widely adopted by farmers. Judge Jeffrey S. White of Federal District Court in San Francisco said that the Agriculture Department should have done an environmental impact statement. He said it should have assessed the consequences from the likely spread of the GM trait to other sugar beets or to the related crops of Swiss chard and red table beets.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11529:judge-rejects-approval-of-gm-sugar-beets
http://bit.ly/ORsVn

+ U.S.: ROUNDUP RESISTANT WEEDS THREATEN NO-TILL
As Roundup Ready crops are planted on more and more acreage, weeds are becoming increasingly tolerant to Roundup (glyphosate). Now, the problem has become so acute in some areas of the South that growers are warning about the loss of no-till acreage.
GMWatch comment: The biotech industry has long claimed that its Roundup Ready GM crops are environmentally friendly because they enable farmers to follow the no-till method. That means they simply douse weeds with Roundup rather than ploughing (tilling), a practice that can erode soil. These claims are made in spite of evidence from the USDA that GM herbicide-tolerant seed has not affected no-till adoption. Now it seems that even this false claim of environmental friendliness has been destroyed.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11516:roundup-resistance-threatens-no-till
http://bit.ly/4J1nb

+ SWINE FLU IN YOUR CORN, ANYONE?
Iowa State University researchers are genetically engineering flu vaccines into corn, in the hope of allowing pigs and humans to get flu vaccinations by eating corn.
http://bit.ly/20bKh4
Read about just a few of the problems with swine flu vaccines at http://www.spinprofiles.org/index.php/Swine_Flu

+ GM TARO BAN WINS INITIAL APPROVAL
A bill prohibiting genetically modified taro (taro is a traditional and sacred food plant) in Maui, Hawaii, has received initial approval from the Maui County Council. Testimony was overwhelmingly in favour of the ban.
http://www.mauinews.com/page/content.detail/id/523846.html?nav=10

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ROUNDUP
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+ RISKS OF GLYPHOSATE
Excellent new summary of health and environmental hazards of glyphosate (pdf)
http://bit.ly/4wIfJx

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ASIA
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+ JAPAN SET TO REJECT GM CANOLA
Australia's canola exports are likely to be significantly impacted by the change of government in Japan. The Democratic Party of Japan has pledged to implement stringent GM labelling laws. Japan already has mandatory labelling of some GM foods and it is expected that new labelling laws will extend to processed foods such as GM canola oil. It's likely that tighter labelling laws will likely lead to greater demand for GM-free canola products, and lower demand for food products that need to be labelled as containing GM ingredients.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11526:japan-set-to-reject-gm-canola
http://bit.ly/uTykH

+ NESTLE THINKS INDIANS MIGHT WANT GM FOOD
Nestle has said it is open to selling GM food in India because Indian consumers might want to eat it. Tell them what you think:
http://greenpeace.in/safefood/poll/

+ BORLAUG'S GREEN REVOLUTION FAILED IN INDIA
More Indians go to bed hungry today than they did on the eve of Independence 62 years ago and prices of staple foods have skyrocketed. And yet, when the obituaries of Norman E Borlaug were written after he passed away a few days ago, he was celebrated as a great 'hunger-fighter', whose intervention with the 'Green Revolution' is supposed to have eradicated hunger in India, points out Sadanand Menon in the Business Standard. In fact, the cause of hunger is lack of access to food, which has been exacerbated by the Green Revolution, says Menon.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11520:sadanand-menon-on-borlaug-and-hunger
http://bit.ly/2JlIvQ

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AFRICA
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+ AFRICA DOESN'T NEED A GREEN REVOLUTION IT NEEDS AGROECOLOGY
An excellent article by Dan Taylor of development charity Find Your Feet explains why Africa needs sustainable agriculture that will provide long-term solutions.
http://bit.ly/uWKvf

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EUROPE
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+ GM WHISTLEBLOWER ON TRIAL IN GERMANY
A well known critic of GM in Germany and a whistleblower on the corruption and sleaze surrounding its introduction there is facing two major court cases and a possible prison sentence. The first case involves a court appearance at Giessen on September 30 as a result of the decontamination of GM barley in Giessen in 2007. This could lead to a lengthy prison sentence, as two of the 'field liberators' were previously sentenced to 6 months in prison and the prosecutor appealed the sentence as being too lenient!

Jorg Bergstedt will be in court again on October 12 in Saarbrucken, because of his whistleblowing on "insider relationships" and networks in the area of GM. Bergstedt is author of the pamphlet Organisierte Unverantwortlichkeit (Organised Irresponsibility), in which he shows the close links that exist among pro-GM politicians, regulatory authorities, companies, lobbyists and research institutes in Germany.

An injunction by the district court in Saarbrucken has ordered him (and only him!) as of August 20 to stop disseminating the pamphlet and its existing content. The case against Jorg Bergstedt was brought by Prof. Uwe Schrader, head of the pro-GM lobby group InnoPlanta, and Kerstin Schmidt, CEO at AgroBioTechnikum and BioTechFarm. Their lawyer is Horst Rehberger, who also represents the Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK)* in Gatersleben in the case of the decontamination of a GM field trial by 6 activists.  

Jorg Bergstedt is determined not to let anybody stop him from telling the truth and has appealed the decision. His supporters are hoping people will be able to be present in Saarbrucken to express their support for Jorg Bergstedt on the day of the hearing. The case is scheduled for 1pm on October 12.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11523:gm-whistleblower-on-trial-in-germany
http://bit.ly/ayZxF

+ GERMAN BEEKEEPER RELEASED FROM PRISON
German beekeeper Michael Grolm was Germany's first 'field liberator' who went to prison for his actions. Earlier this year, Michael Grolm was sentenced to a fine of 1,000 Euros because he entered a field despite an injunction barring him from doing so. The beekeeper refused to pay the fine and announced his intention to go to prison instead, to demonstrate his resolve against the use of GMOs in agriculture.

But the court decided that he could only be detained for not paying the fine after he had disclosed his means. Since he refused the means testing, he was detained for this offence on August 27. This penalty can last up to six months. Grolm's lawyers appealed to the Federal Constitutional Court, which ordered his immediate release on September 22.

In autumn, he might have to face prison time again. This is because he not only entered the field but also pulled up GM corn plants, and so he has another fine (360 Euros) that is outstanding for this.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11527:german-beekeeper-released-from-prison
http://bit.ly/6CSor

+ GERMANY: GM-FREE CLAIM BOOSTS SALES
A "GM-free" claim has boosted dairy sales by as much as 7.7% for the German dairy company Campina. http://is.gd/3wVUT

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CONTAMINATION
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+ ILLEGAL GM FLAX IN 10 EU COUNTRIES UK'S FSA STILL FAILS TO ACT
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has claimed that there are "no grounds for issuing a Food Alert" after the illegal GM flax Triffid was found in flax supplies coming into Europe from Canada. The GM flax was deregistered in 2001 by Canadian authorities and never commercialised under pressure from Canadian flax growers who did not want to risk losing their markets. The EU issued the first alert on 8 September, and has issued four further alerts on new incidents since then. EU alerts state that contaminated shipments may have been distributed to 10 EU countries: Germany, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Romania, Portugal, Hungary, Austria, and Switzerland.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11528:fsa-still-fail-to-act-on-illegal-gm-flax
http://bit.ly/2RjcV3

+ ILLEGAL FLAX PROBABLY SOLD IN EU FOR YEARS
A report in the German news source Sueddeutsche.de says the illegal GM flax was probably sold in the EU for years but went undetected because no test for it had been developed until now. Report in German: http://bit.ly/16tU42

+ SOWING CONTAMINATION?
A Canadian blog, Joybilee Farm, alleges the GM Triffid flax developer Alan McHughen gave seed away for planting without making clear it was a GM flax.
http://bit.ly/kGFzx

+ MORE USEFUL INVESTIGATION OF GM FLAX DEBACLE
http://parsleysnotebook.blogspot.com/

+ MORE UNAUTHORISED GM CONTAMINATION
In the wake of the discovery of GM contamination of the flax seed coming into Europe, there’s a list of the other unauthorized GM contaminations of Europe’s food chain at
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11521:more-unauthorised-gm-contamination
http://bit.ly/18IEgP
And check out the GM Contamination Register for the global picture
http://www.gmcontaminationregister.org/

+ GM CONTAMINATION IMPACTS MARKETS WORLDWIDE
GM is starting to have a dramatic impact on global trade as contamination is found and grain exports are rejected, says an article for Biodiesel Magazine.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11525:gm-contamination-impacts-grain-exports
http://bit.ly/cdbNY

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COMPANY NEWS
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+ INVESTOR SITE PREDICTS SHARE PRICE TUMBLE FOR MONSANTO
http://bit.ly/ltvx9

+ BAYER WANTS TO TRIPLE GM CROP SALES
Bayer aims to boost its GM seeds business and challenge Syngenta of Switzerland for the No. 3 spot among the world's largest supplier of GM crops. It aims to triple plant biotech sales to 1.4 billion euros by 2018.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11515:bayer-aims-to-triple-gm-crop-sales
http://bit.ly/DW3SH

+ FUTURE OF VEG IS NON-GM
Despite dominating global vegetable seeds, Monsanto is mostly not investing in GM varieties. http://bit.ly/4FLPTC

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CLONING
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+ DOG CLONING COMPANY QUITS
US-based biotechnology company BioArts has stopped selling dog clones. Reasons given by company CEO Lou Hawthorne include:
***Efficiency rates varied unpredictably and were generally low.
***The kennels were frequently infected by various diseases.
***One clone had greenish-yellow fur where it should have been white.
***Others had "skeletal malformations, generally not crippling though sometimes serious and always worrisome."
***One clone of a male was born female.
http://www.biopoliticaltimes.org/article.php?id=4924