GMWatch News Review archive

WEEKLY WATCH number 294
from Claire Robinson, WEEKLY WATCH editor

Dear all:

An interesting new report from India reveals that farmers growing organic cotton do massively better financially than those growing GM cotton - and suffer fewer pest problems too (ASIA).

There's some great news from Europe this week with:
* Luxembourg following Austria in banning the cultivation of BASF's GM potato
* Bulgaria's Parliament looking to give children special protection from GM foods
* the world's largest dairy firm getting huge sales increases by moving to GM-free products

On the action front, watch out for the urgent call to tell the Walmart-owned UK supermarket chain ASDA to stay GM-free (EUROPE) and for important news about the AVAAZ petition.

And we're repeating our urgent appeal for funds to enable us to maintain our work (URGENT APPEAL). Our thanks go to those who have donated already.

Claire <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>
Website: http//www.gmwatch.org
Profiles: http://bit.ly/12UAI2
Twitter: http://twitter.com/GMWatch
Facebook: http://bit.ly/c6OnaX

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CONTENTS
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URGENT APPEAL
IMPORTANT NOTE ON AVAAZ PETITION
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
ASIA
EUROPE
LOBBYWATCH
SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
AFRICA
AUSTRALASIA
THE AMERICAS
NON-GM BREAKTHROUGHS
TECHNO-FIXES

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URGENT APPEAL
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+ PLEASE SUPPORT GMWATCH
As you probably know, almost exactly 2 years ago a devastating series of attacks drove the GMWatch website and all our listservs offline. In the aftermath our readers responded so generously that it's been possible for our attention to be almost exclusively fixed on rebuilding and diversifying our campaign so that our impact is greater than ever. But because we've focused on campaign building rather than fundraising, we've now run into the buffers and urgently need to ask you to support our work.
How to donate to GMWatch: You can donate by PayPal or by using your debit or credit card at http://www.gmwatch.org/donations  Alternatively, you can send a cheque or money order made out to "NGIN" to: GMWatch, 26 Pottergate, Norwich, NR2 1DX, UK. Just to emphasise the point, our account is in the name "NGIN". For more information on what GMWatch has been doing and a suggested donation, see
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12290

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IMPORTANT NOTE ON AVAAZ PETITION
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There has been a setback regarding the Avaaz petition, which is asking the European Commission to ban GM foods until the science is done. The petition was getting close to its target of 1 million signatories when the counter was adjusted to include only those who had signed with both their names. Both names are necessary to make the signature valid for submission to the EU. Now the petition has only 630,000 signatories. So if you think you may have signed the petition with only one name, please go back and sign with both and send this message to all your contacts. This time, names of signatories are not displayed.
http://www.avaaz.org/en/eu_health_and_biodiversity/98.php?CLICK_TF_TRACK

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
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+ PLANT SCIENTISTS SUPPORTED MONSANTO'S INTERESTS IN GUISE OF PUBLIC GOOD
"[D]uring the public debate that ended in Europe's virtual moratorium on GM foods, plant scientists kept telling anyone who would listen that the technology would be deployed for the public good. At the same time, everyone in the biotechnology industry knew that Monsanto had the best strains, and that its main interest was in doubling the traditionally modest margins that farmers used to pay for seed. This unresolved clash between the true and purported 'motivation' of agricultural biotechnology helps to explain why government-sponsored dialogue in that arena remains so fraught." - Colin Macilwain, Nature News
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12293

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ASIA
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+ ORGANIC COTTON FARMING BEATS GM IN INDIA - REPORT
A new report by Dr Reyes Tirado for Greenpeace International shows:

* Bt cotton farmers suffer more pest damage than organic farmers, due to heavy attacks from secondary pests and developing Bt resistance by bollworm.

* A total of 26 different chemical pesticides were used by Bt farmers who commonly apply pesticides classified by the World Health Organisation as Extremely or Highly Hazardous.

* Organic cotton farmers use methods that require spending very little money on pest control.

* Net income from cotton is 200% higher for organic farmers than for Bt cotton farmers in the drought-affected year 2009/10, while it is not significantly different between Bt and organic cotton farmers in the favourable rainfall year, 2008/09.

* The difference in income is mostly due to the much higher cost of cultivation for Bt cotton farmers.

* Organic cotton farmers maintain more than twice the number of crops besides cotton in their farm than Bt cotton farmers. The net income from the farm as a whole is 90% higher for organic farmers (2009/10 similar 2008/09).

* Bt cotton farmers incur 65% higher levels of debt than organic cotton farmers.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12284

Download the report "Picking Cotton - The choice between organic and genetically-engineered cotton for farmers in South India"
http://greenpeace.in/safefood/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Picking-Cotton.pdf
See also the related photo essay and audio commentary
http://bit.ly/df1SQk

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EUROPE    
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+ GERMANY: GM-FREE LABELS DELIVER SALES SURGE
The world's largest dairy firm has got a huge sales increase from GM-free products.
http://is.gd/cVAI4

+ TWO-THIRDS WANT GM TO BE KEPT OFF THEIR PLATE - NEW OPINION POLL
Two-thirds of people in the UK want GM crops to be kept out of the food chain a new GFK NOP survey for Friends of the Earth and GM Freeze revealed. The survey also revealed that:
* Less than 40% were aware that GM is currently creeping onto their plates via imported GM animal feed being fed to animals in British factory farms
* while there is currently no requirement for retailers to identify animal products containing GM to consumers, 89 per cent of those surveyed wanted these products to be clearly labelled
* 72 per cent would pay extra for non-GM food
The survey follows news that Walmart-owned food retailer Asda has abandoned its commitment to GM-free eggs and poultry. The campaigning groups are calling on Asda and other supermarkets to respond to public opinion by pledging to keep GM out of the nation's meat and dairy.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12283
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12286

+ ASDA CUSTOMERS REJECT COMPANY POLICY ON GM ANIMAL FEED
The above survey shows that Asda's decisions about sourcing GM poultry feed are not supported by the majority of its customers. Respondents to the survey were asked where they did their main supermarket shop, so answers from Asda customers could be analysed separately. Two thirds of Asda customers (62%) want the option to buy products from animals reared and fed using non-GM animals feed, and an overwhelming 92% want labels to show which meat, dairy products and eggs comes from animals where GM ingredients were included in the feed. Six out of ten Asda customers (64%) want the company to abandon using GM feed altogether, with 75% saying they would pay 2p/kilo extra for meat and 0.5p/ litre for milk to enable this to happen. Only 14% of Asda customers want to see animals fed using GM ingredients.
URGENT - TAKE ACTION: Tell Asda to stay GM free
http://www.foe.co.uk/campaigns/biodiversity/press_for_change/asda_rolls_back_on_gm_23592.html

+ BULGARIA MOVES TO PROTECT CHILDREN FROM GMOs
A ban on all GM products and ingredients in children's foods in Bulgaria has been proposed in an amendment in the Bulgarian Food Act. The amendment stipulates a full ban on the distribution and sale of food products containing genetically modified organisms (GMO) in childcare centres, kindergartens, schools and the adjacent commercial outlets. The sale of GM foods and products will be allowed in separate and clearly marked areas, such as stands, shelves, etc.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12291

+ LUXEMBOURG BANS THE "AMFLORA" GM POTATO
Luxembourg's Health Minister Mars Di Bartolomeo has banned the cultivation of BASF's "Amflora" GM potato in the country. Luxembourg's ban was announced barely a few months after its approval by the European Commission. "Amflora", developed by BASF, has been approved for cultivation, use in animal feed and a presence up to 0.9% in human food. This decision was made despite scientific evidence about the risk of antibiotic resistance and the absence of safety testing of the long-term effects of GMOs on health and the environment.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/12297-luxembourg-bans-basfs-gm-potato

+ VIDEO: DR JOHN POINTS OUT PROBLEMS WITH GM APPROVALS TO EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
http://www.gmwatch.eu/gm-videosb/24-corporate-takeover

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LOBBYWATCH
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+ GM POTATO TRIAL PROPAGANDA
Last week the EDP, an East Anglian paper with the John Innes Centre in its catchment area, gave over not just its front page but a double page spread, and an editorial, to the GM potato trial of the Sainsbury Laboratory of the JIC. Much of the material was authored by the EDP's pro-GM agricultural editor Michael Pollett. Also to the fore in the coverage was Prof Jonathan Jones of the Sainsbury Laboratory, who announced that it was time to "grow up" and accept the benefits of GM crops. This led one EDP reader to suggest Jones had graduated from the same Charm School as BP CEO, Tony Hayward. The EDP has published several critical letters, including two reproduced here:
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12287
It has also published a very long letter from Derek Burke, who tells readers that everything in the GM garden is lovely and that as a GM regulatory committee chairman he had to be scrupulous in his neutrality on GM. In fact, Burke is an aggressive campaigner for GM, see "The GM Godfather":
http://ngin.tripod.com/articleBurke.htm
Jonathan Jones also promoted GM on BBC Radio 4’s consumer programme You and Yours. Jones is a co-founder of Mendel Biotechnology in which Monsanto is a key investor and collaborator:
http://www.spinprofiles.org/index.php?title=Jonathan_Jones


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SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
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+ EFFECTIVE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT OR BUST
Without effective public engagement and transparency, the new field of synthetic biology will not get off the ground, says an interesting article for Nature News. See also QUOTE OF THE WEEK.
http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12293

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AFRICA
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+ KENYA'S GM LAW PREPARES TO GO LIVE
Kenya's long-awaited biosafety law is likely to become operational this month - well over a year after its president approved the legislation. Kenya will become the fourth African country to implement such legislation, after Burkina Faso, Egypt and South Africa. Miriam Kinyua, a biotechnologist at Moi University, Kenya, called on the regulatory board to acknowledge its ignorance in some of the areas it will now have to work on. She told SciDev.Net that Kenya should not rush into the production of GMOs because it still lacks adequate capacity to deal safely with technologies associated with it. "[Allowing GMOs] depends on whether we will work with propaganda or facts," she said.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/12295-kenyas-gm-law-prepares-to-go-live

+ LUGAR-CASEY, GM AND GATES
A new AGRA Watch position paper takes a closer look at the Lugar-Casey bill, "a case study in the interlocking interests of big business, big philanthropy, US foreign policy and US aid". It also highlights new developments, both in Kenyan legislation and in the international political economy that “threaten to use the global food crisis as an opening to solidify genetic engineering as a necessary part of food security strategies.” AGRA Watch formed in 2008 to challenge the Gates Foundation's participation in the problematic Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, and to support sustainable, agro-ecological alternatives already practiced in Africa. AGRA Watch says it has witnessed an acceleration in the push for GM as a "solution" to hunger in Africa, a criminalisation of GM's opponents as eco-imperialists unwilling to accept scientific advancements, and a deification of philanthropic support for corporate solutions to global food issues.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/12296-lugar-casey-gm-and-gates

+ RACE TO OWN AFRICA'S SORGHUM GENES
The hunt for agrofuel and drought tolerant crops has propelled a huge commercial interest in sorghum, including a spate of patent claims over different components of the sorghum genome. Patent claims have been lodged by US companies, Ceres and Edenspace as well as the Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University (Texas A&M) and Rutgers University. Key sought after traits include sorghum flowering, plant growth (biomass), sugar content and cold and salt tolerance. Patent claims are designed to control a set of promoter genes and other genetic components of sorghum to create sorghum cultivars. According to author, Edward Hammond “This move is the contemporary biotech equivalent of an 18th century European explorer planting his flag on a little understood foreign land and claiming it for himself or his sovereign, as if by divine right subordinating all other interests in the territory.”
http://bit.ly/asIOQc
Read the report - The Sorghum Gene Grab
http://www.biosafetyafrica.org.za/index.php/20100618314/The-Sorghum-Gene-Grab/menu-id-100029.html

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AUSTRALASIA
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+ U.S. LOBBIES TO BLOCK GM LABELS IN AUSTRALIA
US biotech companies are lobbying the Australian Government not to label GM products, asserting this would be an undue restriction on trade with the US.
http://bit.ly/b5lRXr

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THE AMERICAS
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+ USA: SUPPORT MANDATORY LABELS ON GM FOODS
http://www.capwiz.com/grassrootsnetroots/issues/alert/?alertid=15154336&type=ML

+ MEXICO: FIRST GM MAIZE CROP STOKES ANGER
Mexico's first crop of GM maize - due to be harvested later this month is stoking anger and anxiety. Farm groups and environmentalists have filed an appeal with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in February 2010, arguing that Mexican officials have been unwilling or unable to prevent the illegal spread of GM crops in their country and that it is too soon to permit cultivation before the consequences of genetic contamination are fully understood. They are concerned that Mexican seed dealers have smuggled in thousands of sacks of GM corn with impunity. The commission can refer cases to the Inter-American Human Rights Court if a government does not comply with its recommendations.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/12294-gm-crop-battle-in-latin-america

+ MEXICO: RETREAT TO SUBSISTENCE
Longish but rewarding article in The Nation
http://www.thenation.com/article/36330/retreat-subsistence

+ CHILE: MOBILIZATION AGAINST GM CROPS
Dozens of Chilean civil society organizations are standing together in the fight against a so-called "Plant Breeders' Rights" Senate bill, which they say will put in danger native seeds, negatively impact consumer health, threaten agricultural exports and organic production, increase the dependence of farmers on agrochemical corporations, and raise the price of food.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/12294-gm-crop-battle-in-latin-america

+ BOLIVIA: GM CROPS ARE NOT WELCOME
Bolivian president Evo Morales has decreed a five-year transition period in which to eliminate GM crops from the national territory, as well as a process for rescuing local seeds in order to promote food sovereignty.
http://www.gmwatch.org/latest-listing/1-news-items/12294-gm-crop-battle-in-latin-america

+ PERU: STUDY SUGGESTS GM CONTAMINATION GROWING
http://bit.ly/d89FMf

+ PARAGUAY: LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION AND GM SOY DRIVING DEFORESTATION
http://bit.ly/bvv1H9

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NON-GM BREAKTHROUGHS
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+ BLIGHT-RESISTANT NON-GM POTATO IMPROVES ANDEAN SMALLHOLDERS' PRODUCTION
http://bit.ly/bDhoHN

+ MAKING KENYAN MAIZE SAFE FROM AFLATOXINS WITH NON-GM BIOCONTROL
Natural, safe, cost-effective.
http://bit.ly/bDhoHN

+ AFRICA: RESEARCHERS DEVELOP NON-GM STRIGA-RESISTANT SORGHUM
http://bit.ly/bDhoHN

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TECHNO-FIXES
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+ MONSANTO AMONG THOSE WORKING ON GEOENGINEERING TECHNO-FIXES
Monsanto, together with Oxford University, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Stanford University, MIT, BASF, the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Max Planck Institute of Chemistry, are developing geoengineering projects to "fix" climate change. Geoengineeering is the large-scale, intentional intervention in the ocean, atmosphere and land to make specific environmental changes to combat the human-caused effects of climate change. Proposed geoengineering projects include:
*Shooting sulphate particles into the stratosphere to reflect the sun's rays;
*Dumping iron particles in the oceans to encourage the growth of CO2-absorbing plankton;
*Genetically engineering crops so their leaves can better reflect sunlight;
*Constructing 16 trillion space sun shades to deflect sunlight above Earth;
*Launching 5,000-30,000 boats with turbines to propel salt spray to whiten clouds in order to deflect sunlight; and
*Dumping limestone into the ocean to change its acidity so that it can absorb extra CO2.
http://bit.ly/aCiFNX

+ GENE BASHERS CREATE PLANTS TO GROW ON MARS
When the geoengineers have pumped enough pollutants into the atmosphere to reduce the amount of solar radiation hitting the earth, we will need a further techno-fix to solve the problems created by the previous ones: crops genetically engineered to grow in low-light conditions. Don't worry, the gene bashers have those in the pipeline, too, supposedly designed to grow on Mars for when they’ve helped make Earth uninhabitable:
Christopher S. Brown, Dynamac Corporation and NC State University, “Programmable Plants: Development of an in planta System for the Remote Monitoring and Control of Plant Function for Life Support”. Final Report of the Phase I Study for the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts, November 30, 2000
http://www.niac.usra.edu/files/studies/final_report/491Brown.pdf