GM WATCH MONTHLY REVIEW No. 75
From Claire Robinson, Monthly Review editor
www.gmwatch.org
http://www.spinprofiles.org/index.php/GM_Watch:_Portal
Follow GMWatch on Twitter: http://twitter.com/GMWatch
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MONTHLY REVIEW CONTENTS
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BT BRINJAL APPROVAL SCANDAL
GM AND PESTICIDES NEW REPORT
GM RISKS
LOBBYWATCH
CORPORATE CRIMES
FEEDING THE WORLD
CONTAMINATION
RESISTANCE
CORPORATE TAKEOVER
CLIMATE CHANGE
ARTIFICIALLY ENGINEERED FOODS
REST OF THE MONTH’S NEWS IN BRIEF
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BT BRINJAL APPROVAL SCANDAL
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+ INDIA: BT BRINJAL APPROVAL "RIGGED"
The Indian TV news channel CNN-IBN says it has proof the Indian Government "rigged" regulatory approval for Bt brinjal (aubergine/eggplant). The new controversy centres on the expert report which recommended approval of Bt brinjal.
Dr Pushpa Bhargava, the Supreme Court's independent nominee to the GEAC (Genetic Engineering Approval Committee) wrote to the Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh on October 20, 2009. Dr Bhargava said that the chairperson of the expert committee that recommended Bt brinjal for clearance, Prof Aruja Reddy, made a confidential call to him and said that 8 of the tests that should have been done were not done.
Dr Bhagava says that Prof Reddy told him that he was under "tremendous pressure" to clear Bt Brinjal and had calls from the Agriculture Minister, GEAC and Industry.
Prof Reddy told CNN-IBN, "you think this is powerful... the decisions were already taken by the Review Committee on Genetic Engineering (the RCGM)".
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/11768-more-on-indias-gm-scandal
http://bit.ly/5Hgwh8
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/11767-withdraw-qriggedq-bt-brinjal-report
http://bit.ly/7qmKLs
+ DEVINDER SHARMA COMMENT ON RIGGED APPROVAL
Journalist Devinder Sharma comments on the "rigged" approval:
The entire regulatory system has become subservient to the US interests. The Indian Council for Agricultural Research is now completely in the hands of ”¦ USAID, and so is the Department of Biotechnology. And if you think the Ministry for Health and Family Welfare is any better, you just have to walk into the corridors of the ministry. You can hear the whispers clearly.
Ever since the Indo-US Knowledge Initiative in Agriculture, Research and Marketing (KIA) was put into place (almost the same time the Nuclear treaty was signed), the ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research) does exactly what the USAID wants it to do. The outgoing Director General Dr Mangla Rai is merely a figurehead, an Indian face for the American operations.
http://gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/11768-more-on-indias-gm-scandal
http://bit.ly/5OyjaY
+ INDIA: BIG PROTEST AGAINST BT BRINJAL
A large number of consumers, farmers, doctors and students with placards denouncing GM crops and food gathered In Ludhiana, Punjab under the banner of "Alliance for GM-free and safe food Punjab". The protesters demanded a ban on Bt brinjal.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11670:bt-bri njal-clearance-ignored-dissenters
http://bit.ly/YlPfJ
+ 10 REASONS TO SAY "NO" TO BT BRINJAL!
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/11765-ten-reasons-to-say-no-to-bt-brinjal
http://bit.ly/5Xm3mt
+ LEADING SCIENTIST CALLS FOR GM FREEZE
Dr Pushpa Bhargava, the scientist appointed by India's Supreme Court to the country's apex GM regulatory body, the GEAC, has called for a freeze on GM crops on biosafety and health grounds in a hard-hitting article for the Indian press.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11645:leadin g-scientist-calls-for-gm-freeze-
http://bit.ly/SQZTd
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GM AND PESTICIDES NEW REPORT
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+ GM CROPS CAUSE BIG JUMP IN PESTICIDE USE REPORT
The rapid adoption by US farmers of GM corn, soybeans and cotton has promoted increased use of pesticides, an epidemic of herbicide-resistant weeds, and more chemical residues in foods, according to an important new report by health and environmental protection groups.
The groups said research showed that herbicide use grew by 383 million pounds from 1996 to 2008, with 46 percent of the total increase occurring in 2007 and 2008.
The report was released by nonprofits the Organic Center (TOC), the Union for Concerned Scientists (UCS) and the Center for Food Safety (CFS).
The groups said that while herbicide use has climbed, insecticide use has dropped because of biotech crops. Still, that leaves a net overall increase on US farm fields of 318 million pounds of pesticides, which includes insecticides and herbicides, over the first 13 years of commercial use.
"This report confirms what we've been saying for years," said Bill Freese, science policy analyst for the Center for Food Safety. "The most common type of genetically engineered crops promotes increased use of pesticides, an epidemic of resistant weeds, and more chemical residues in our foods. This may be profitable for the biotech/pesticide companies, but it's bad news for farmers, human health and the environment."
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11682:gm-crops-cause-big-jump-in-pesticide-use-report
http://bit.ly/3Grl8Z
Read executive summary of report, Impacts of Genetically Engineered Crops on Pesticide Use: The First Thirteen Years:
http://www.organic-center.org/reportfiles/EXSUM_13Years20091116.pdf
Read full report: http://www.organic-center.org/reportfiles/13Years20091116.pdf
Extracts from the report summarized by GMW: http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11696:cherry-picking-new-report-on-gm-and-pesticides
http://bit.ly/5N9uYn
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11699:key-findings-from-gm-and-pesticides-report
http://bit.ly/5gbyR3
Comment by Andrew Kimbrell, executive director, Center for Food Safety:
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11701:kimbrell-on-the-benbrook-report
http://bit.ly/876ri6
+ ATTEMPT TO COUNTER BENBROOK REPORT FALLS FLAT
The report, Impacts of Genetically Engineered Crops on Pesticide Use: The First Thirteen Years, by Charles Benbrook stirred a lot of interest and some attempted rebuttals. All of the latter, from the Biotechnology Industry Organisation down, seem to draw heavily on the findings of the UK consultancy PG Economics Ltd.
For instance, an article published by the pro-GM lobby group Truth About Trade states, "It's possible to point to statistics that say the exact opposite [to the Benbrook study]. PG Economics Ltd., a well-regarded English consulting firm, recently issued its own findings and said that the use of pesticides on global biotech acreage has dropped almost 800 million pounds--or nearly 9 percent--during the same period."
But PG Economics' reports on GM crops are among those that Benbrook carefully demolishes in his report, citing data from independent sources to back up his case. Benbrook concludes that PG Economics uses "creative and highly questionable methodological strategies" in compiling its industry-friendly reports.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11752:benbrook-on-pg-economics-methodological-creativity
More comment on Benbrook and PG Economics: http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11753:more-on-pg-economics-methodological-creativity
http://bit.ly/7x6oSE
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GM RISKS
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+ "HUGE UNKNOWNS" WITH GMOs, CONFERENCE TOLD
A conference on "Genetic engineering, farming and food" held in Mysore, India discussed the science behind GM crops and their ramifications on food security, environment and genetic diversity. The conference was held in the backdrop of the Government’s move to introduce GM brinjal (eggplant/aubergine) in India.
Michel Pimbert, Director, International Institute for Environment and Development, UK, said bad science influenced by corporate power enabled GMOs to enter the market. He cautioned against being carried away by the existence of regulatory frameworks to monitor GMOs and said they were not only inadequate but were conceived to expedite the introduction of GMOs under the influence of corporate power rather than protect the consumers.
Dr Pimbert, former principal entomologist at the International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), warned that there were "huge unknowns" about the risks involved.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11695:qhuge-unknownsq-with-gmos-conference-told
http://bit.ly/4P0enD
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LOBBYWATCH
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+ MONSANTO NOMINATED FOR WORST LOBBYING AWARD
Monsanto has been nominated for the Angry Mermaid Award for worst climate lobbying. Monsanto is lobbying for RoundupReady (RR) soy to be considered a "climate-friendly" crop that is eligible for carbon credits and subsidies under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) - and pushing for a meaningless "responsible" label for RoundupReady soy, which could be used to certify "sustainable" agrofuels.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11685:more-on-monsanto-and-worst-lobbying-award-
http://bit.ly/7mFw4b
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11694:voting-opens-for-worst-climate-lobbying-award
http://bit.ly/7vAbzQ
You can see other nominees for the award and cast your vote here: http://www.angrymermaid.org/vote
+UK: WILL OUR VIEWS ON GM FOOD BE MODIFIED?
Stand by for yet another attempt to persuade a resistant British public to consume GM food. The Food Standards Agency - the same quango that constantly condemns the organic produce that people really do want - is about to organise, at ministers' request, a "dialogue project" to see how consumers "can be helped to make informed choices about the food they eat".
The steering group, the FSA says, will "include stakeholders . . . with different views of GM". In fact, it seems that only two of the 11 to be named are known to oppose the technology.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11679:will-our-views-on-gm-food-be-modified
http://bit.ly/8QlsCS
+ PEOPLE WANT INDEPENDENT INFORMATION ON GM FOODS
People want truly independent information to help them make up their minds about GM foods, according to a new study for the Food Standards Agency (FSA). Shoppers also want a clear labelling system to tell them if the food they buy is GM or if products like milk and meat were produced from animals given GM feed.
The study, Exploring Attitudes to GM Food, will be presented to the independent GM Dialogue Steering Group which was set up by the FSA at the Government's request to decide how best the public can be informed and involved in discussions on GM food.
The new research suggests consumers do not trust all the information they receive about GM products and are suspicious of the Government's stance.
The report's conclusions say the FSA is "well positioned" to provide the public with information about GM food but only if it can "provide evidence to the public of its independence from government, from business and from campaigning organizations".
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11751:people-want-independent-info-on-gm-foods
http://bit.ly/5SWIoA
+ INTRODUCE GM LABELLING OF MEAT AND DAIRY SOIL ASSOCIATION
In the light of the FSA findings (above), the Soil Association is asking the Food Standards Agency to introduce compulsory labelling of any meat or dairy products from animals fed on GM animal feed.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/11759-letter-to-rooker-on-labelling
http://bit.ly/6885nE
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CORPORATE CRIMES
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+ PUERTO RICO: GM CROP HAVEN
Puerto Rico has passed a law designed to position the island as an agricultural biotech Mecca. The new law introduces financing incentives and measures designed to ease the process by which biotech corporations obtain trade rights and licenses on the island. Firms will receive assistance for projects that include the development and mass production of GM plants, the use of GM plants to produce pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals or to act as catalysts in environmental cleaning processes. Since 1987 Puerto Rico has registered 2,177 official field tests for GM crops, placing the island as the third preferred place for planting experimental or commercial GM crops, after Hawaii and the US state of Indiana.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11680:puerto-rico-gm-crop-haven
GMW comment: Puerto Rico has long been seen by some as an environmental dumping ground for toxic subtances and a case study in environmental racism - the intentional siting of hazardous waste sites and polluting industries in communities inhabited mainly by African-American, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asians, migrant farm workers, and the working poor.
http://www.mapcruzin.com/EI/ejigc.html
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FEEDING THE WORLD
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+ GATES IS WRONG SIERRA CLUB
At the World Food Prize forum, Bill Gates claimed that environmentalists opposed to genetic engineering of farm crops are against anything that increases yields. But nothing could be farther from the truth, says the Sierra Club. First, GM does not increase yields. Second, as a United Nations study shows, organic farming methods increase yields dramatically and offer Africa the best chance of breaking the cycle of poverty and malnutrition - while improving soil and farmer incomes into the bargain.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11681:now-sierra-club-tell-gates-hes-wrong
http://bit.ly/2p2I6c
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CONTAMINATION
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+ MEXICO'S GM MAIZE UNDER FIRE
Mexico doesn't have an adequate system to monitor or protect natural maize varieties from transgenes, say prominent scientists concerned about the experimental planting of GM maize. In the past month, Monsanto and Dow AgriSciences have received government permission to plant transgenic maize across 24 plots, covering a total of nearly 13 hectares, in the northern states of Sonora, Sinaloa, Chihuahua, Coahuila and Tamaulipas. The planting of transgenic maize had been prohibited for 11 years in Mexico, where maize was first domesticated.
However, nearly 2,000 scientists have signed a petition to block the experiments. "There is no way to stop gene flow to the native crops," says signatory Montgomery Slatkin, a geneticist at the University of California, Berkeley. Greenpeace and other groups filed a legal challenge, which the government has rejected.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/11758-mexicos-transgenic-maize-under-fire
http://bit.ly/77MFKb
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GMM APPROVALS/EXPANSION
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+ CHINA APPROVES GM RICE
China has approved its first strain of GM rice for commercial production. The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture's Biosafety Committee issued biosafety certificates to pest-resistant Bt rice, with large-scale production to start in 2-3 years. But any commercialisation is still dependent on the success of trials and *public acceptance.
http://bit.ly/7DLoR8
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/11764-china-approves-gm-rice-safety
http://bit.ly/6JSvbV
+ CHINA'S ELITE EAT ALL-ORGANIC
How China's elite insulate themselves from GM rice and other food contamination.
http://www.gmwatch.org/component/content/article/1-news-items/176-amid-milk-scare-chinas-elite-eat-all-organic?
http://bit.ly/6ErjWn
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RESISTANCE
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+ INDIA: RESPONSE TO SHANTHARAM
An organic farmer's powerful response to an interview with Dr S. Shantaram, former Syngenta man and key player in India's industry-linked GM lobby group Foundation for Biotechnology Awareness and Education (FBAE), is here:
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11757:a-response-to-a-shantharam-tantrum
http://bit.ly/5sUxQO
+ IRELAND: GM-FREE LABEL GOOD FOR BUSINESS
The Irish Government's policy to keep Ireland off-limits to GM crops and to introduce a voluntary GM-free food label provides an untapped opportunity for Ireland's farm, food and tourist industries to grow their global market share and secure a unique selling point - the most credible GM-free food brand in Europe, Michael O'Callaghan of GM-free Ireland said.
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11686:gm-free-label-good-for-business
http://bit.ly/4Sp3hn
Check out GM-free Ireland's 'GM-free food production' briefing, which shows amongst other things that Brazil produces enough GM-free soy to take care of all Europe's food/feed needs: http://www.gmfreeireland.org/GMFI-briefing-3.pdf
+ FRANCE OUTLINES PROPOSALS FOR GM-FREE LABELS
The French government's advisory council on biotechnology has outlined rules for a voluntary GM-free labelling system in a new report. Currently, there is no European regulation on what constitutes GM-free, although products that contain more than 0.9 per cent GM ingredients must indicate GM content. However this does not apply to meat and dairy products, with no requirement that a distinction be made between those that come from animals fed GM or non-GM feed. The recommendations include a 0.1 per cent threshold for GM material in plant products and animal feed, and propose that public authorities should set a minimum distance between apiaries and fields where GM crops are grown. Labels could then designate plant products as 'GM-free', animal products as 'fed on GM-free feed' or 'derived from animals fed without GM feed', and honey as 'biotech-free'.
http://bit.ly/7sk3sg
+ PITFALLS OF GM-FREE LABELS
More on GM-free labeling, including Roberto Verzola's warnings of its potential pitfalls, here:
http://gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11756:more-on-gm-free-label-good-for-business
http://bit.ly/6RR2fu
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CORPORATE TAKEOVER
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+ SCIENTISTS CONCERNED FOR ACADEMIC FREEDOM
Dr Judy Carman, senior scientist working in the field of epidemiology in Australia and awarded a government grant to study the safety of GM feed, has been subjected to a sustained campaign of vilification by individuals associated with the biotech industry, with the clear intention of preventing her from carrying out the research. Political pressure is now being brought to bear on her research by the current Agriculture and Food Minister of Western Australia.
Dr Shiv Chopra, a former scientist at Health Canada who was fired when he went public with doubts about Monsanto's GM bovine growth hormone, comments: "The same or worse is happening all across the world. For instance, a workshop at which I and another scientist were invited ”¦ to discuss the pros and cons of vaccines at the First Nations (Aboriginal) conference in Ottawa was abruptly cancelled, apparently under threat from Health Canada officials."
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11704:scientists-concerned-for-academic-freedom-
http://bit.ly/8ZtSlN
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CLIMATE CHANGE
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+ ORGANIC FARMING CAN HELP CLIMATE CHANGE NEW RESEARCH
New research from the Soil Association reveals that if all UK farmland was converted to organic farming, at least 3.2 million tonnes of carbon would be taken up by the soil each year - the equivalent of taking nearly 1 million cars off the road.
http://www.soilassociation.org/Whyorganic/Climatefriendlyfoodandfarming/Soilcarbon/tabid/574/Default.aspx
http://bit.ly/4OZEGu
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ARTIFICIALLY ENGINEERED FOODS
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+ SCIENTISTS GROW MEAT IN A LAB
Scientists have "grown" meat in the laboratory for the first time. Cells from a live pig were grown in a "broth" derived from the blood products of animal foetuses. Yum!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/6684854/Scientists-grow-meat-in-laboratory.html
http://bit.ly/8mfZL9
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/science/article6936352.ece
http://bit.ly/91a3n9
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REST OF THE MONTH'S NEWS IN BRIEF
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+ STOP SELLING OUT SCIENCE TO COMMERCE
An important new report has been published by Scientists for Global Responsibility, called Science and the Corporate Agenda. The report considers how the commercialisation of science "brings with it a wide range of detrimental effects, including bias, conflicts of interest, a narrowing of the research agenda, and misrepresentation of research results. It examines these effects across five sectors: pharmaceuticals; tobacco; military/defence; oil and gas; and biotechnology." In an article for New Scientist, the report's authors, Stuart Parkinson and Chris Langley, say it "exposes problems so serious that we can no longer afford to be indifferent to them".
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11651:stop-s elling-out-science-to-commerce
http://bit.ly/2QvHAm
Report available here:
http://sgr.org.uk/SciencePolicy/CorporateInfluence.html
GM-related extracts from the report:
http://bit.ly/1NWQKs
Great quotes on same issue:
http://www.bangmfood.org/quotes/24-quotes/16-commercial-influence-on-science
http://bit.ly/KaVLf
+ PROMISES, PROMISES
How hype damages the reputation of science - article from The Scientist:
http://www.geneticsandsociety.org/article.php?id=4976
+ EUROPE REJECTS GM CORN
A GM corn has been withdrawn from Europe because of safety concerns. Monsanto has pulled its commercial development application for high lysine LY038 corn, originally intended only as feed for animals, after the European Food Safety Authority questioned the safety studies conducted by the company. Rather than conduct additional research as the European authority requested, Monsanto decided to abandon its bid to introduce the corn to the European market.
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/HighLysineGMMaize.php
http://bit.ly/QkafP
Sidney Morning Herald pieces
http://bit.ly/37Iidq
http://bit.ly/11JAle
Expert alleges systematic use of wrong controls and potential for toxins:
http://bit.ly/2yZh9g (listen or read)
Time to replace the regulators says former GM scientist
http://bit.ly/1TXQ31
+ AUSTRALIA: INDUSTRY AVOIDS TRUTH ABOUT GM SEGREGATION PROBLEMS
As farmers are commencing delivery of their canola, the agricultural industry is avoiding answering genuine questions from non-GM farmers. According to the Network of Concerned Farmers (NCF), the grain industry is accepting GM contamination but refusing to outline the difficult conditions and consequences for non-GM farmers.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11656:gm-segregation-nightmare
http://bit.ly/3ogrDx
+ INDIAN GOVT PROMISES GM CROPS TO SOLVE ALL NUTRITIONAL DEFIENCIES!
http://business.rediff.com/report/2009/nov/26/gm-foods-may-hit-market-in-the-near%20future.htm
http://bit.ly/8z7bjk
+ INDIA: ACTION DEMANDED AGAINST BT SEED MANUFACTURERS
With Vidarbha's cotton federation now officially acknowledging a big loss to the cotton crop, farmers' pressure group Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti has demanded that the government should seek compensation to the tune of Rs 4,000 crore from Bt cotton seed manufacturers and insecticide/pesticide makers for the losses suffered by farmers.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11670:bt-bri njal-clearance-ignored-dissenters
http://bit.ly/YlPfJ
+ PROBLEMS WITH THE GM OMEGA-3 SOYBEAN
Monsanto's new soya bean genetically modified to produce the omega-3 fatty acids is supposed to be great news for farmers, consumers and our overfished seas. But do the claims being made for it by the company and its supporters stack up? This compilation of concerns comes from various articles and other points put to us about the problems with Monsanto's omega-3 GM soybean. More details as to sources - plus the articles - here:
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11657:problems-with-monsantos-omega-3-gm-soybean
http://bit.ly/VyAwi
+ MONSANTO'S NEW RR2 SOYBEAN DISAPPOINTING
Monsanto said the increase in farmers' yields generated by its new GM soybeans is at the low end of its forecast range.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aii_24MDZ8SU
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=agSA8yQgeO.Q
+ CHEMICAL COMPANIES FINED FOR CARTEL
EU hits division of BASF with fine:
http://bit.ly/1ZBusK (video clip)
+ UK GOVT GIVES IN TO PESTICIDE LOBBY AGAIN OVER TOXIC WEEDKILLER
The UK government has shamefully capitulated to Dow and the pesticide lobby regarding aminopyralid, the weedkiller that decimated garden- and allotment-grown crops prior to its temporary withdrawal in 2008.
http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page21280
+ VETERAN WINS GROUNDBREAKING CLAIM FOR AGENT ORANGE EXPOSURE
A US veteran has won what's thought to be the first Veterans Administration claim for exposure inside the continental United States to Agent Orange.
http://www.southernstudies.org/2009/11/veteran-wins-groundbreaking-claim-for-age nt-orange-exposure-at-georgia-military-base.html
http://bit.ly/3rvGCK
+ CORPORATE AGRIBIZ IS REAL ENEMY OF FARMERS
Farmers need to figure out who their real enemies are - and it's agribiz companies.
http://host.madison.com/ct/news/opinion/column/article_1aef0308-5e14-5def-8cf9-3 eee9b3ad155.html
http://bit.ly/3VQMee
+ FIRST HARVESTS OF FLOOD RESISTANT RICE
This is the rice that some have tried to pass off as a GM success.
http://bit.ly/34hnWr
Excellent article by Peter Melchett on how Prof Sir David King tried to claim this project and others as great GM success stories.
http://bit.ly/zCmPl
+ ECOLOGICAL FARMING IS REAL GREEN REVOLUTION - REPORT
A new Greenpeace report, Agriculture at a Crossroads: Food for Survival, presents key findings from IAASTD, showing how ecological farming offers the real 'green revolution'.
http://bit.ly/4Xqno
+ TRADE CHAOS LOOMS FROM GM CROPS
The giant US agri-biotech and commodity trade corporations are using their monopoly on seeds and a "contaminate first and legislate later" policy to push their unwanted GM animal feed into the European market, says GM-free Ireland. GM-free Ireland is commenting on a story in the New York Times in which EU agriculture commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel is once again scaremongering about the EU running out of animal feed if it does not drop its resistance to importing unapproved GMOs in animal feed.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11642:trade- chaos-looms-from-gm-crops
http://bit.ly/4zI3Fw
+ UK: ILLEGAL GM FLAX SEED FOUND IN MARKS AND SPENCER BREAD
Illegal GM 'Triffid' flax seed has been found in bread sold by Marks & Spencer. Critics of GM farming say the discovery provides damning evidence that Britain's food watchdogs are failing to police the nation's food chain.
http://bit.ly/1lVeMs
+ NEW FILM ON WHY BEES ARE DYING
A new film, called Nicotine Bees, provides an excellent synopsis of the loss of honeybees and the issue of nicotinyl insecticides (also known as neonicotinoids) being used in a new way - as seed coatings.
http://bit.ly/1qwMCW
See also on bees:
GM crops and honey bee research
http://bit.ly/44jRDp
Bee learning affected by Bt Cry1Ab toxin
http://bit.ly/3obI9s
See also:
GM crops impact beneficial insects
http://bit.ly/1YXCye
More on bee die-off and agrochemicals
http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/1798290.html
+ QUOTE OF THE MONTH
"If Monsanto is for it, I'm against it. If Monsanto is against it, I'm for it."
--US farmer, Joel Salatin, Polyface Farm
http://bit.ly/4Sebo1
News and comment on genetically modified foods and their associated pesticides 
