GMWatch News Review archive

A review of a pretty momentous month.

*If you like what we do at GM Watch, please help us continue by making a donation online* http://www.gmwatch.org/donate.asp

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MONTHLY REVIEW CONTENTS
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GM MOSQUITOES
CAMPAIGNS OF THE MONTH
HEALTH EFFECTS OF GMOs / FOOD SAFETY
GM BANS / RESTRICTIONS
BIOFUELS
PHARMA CROPS
ALTERNATIVES TO GM
CORPORATE TAKEOVER
CORPORATE CRIMES
CONTAMINATION
GM POTATOES
ANIMAL BIOTECH
RESISTANCE
LOBBYWATCH
COMPANY NEWS
LABELLING
NEW BOOK

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GM MOSQUITOES
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+ GM MOSQUITOES AND MALARIA
Superb article by the evolutionary biologist Christophe Boete on the limitations of GM mosquitoes. Boete researches evolutionary ecology at the Institut de recherche pour le developpement-Centre national de la recherche scientifique, Montpellier, and is editor of the book, 'Genetically Modified Mosquitoes and Malaria Control'. More of Boete's papers available at http://cboete.free.fr/publications.html

Article on GM mosquitoes and malaria at
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7719

+ GM MOSQUITOES NO SILVER BULLET
The media has been full of reports hailing a GM mosquito as the means of eliminating malaria. But Marcelo Jacobs-Lorena, who leads the research at Johns Hopkins, has been far more guarded, as has Hillary Hurd, a parasitologist at Keele University in the UK, on whose research findings the John Hopkins team drew.

Hurd cautions that the malaria-causing parasites used by the Johns Hopkins team infect mice, not humans. The human applications are still unknown. And Jacobs-Lorena says, 'Transgenic mosquitoes by themselves will never be able to solve the problem. The only way is to use a combination of approaches... No one should think of this as a silver bullet.'
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7672

+ INDIAN PUBLIC HEALTH EXPERTS WARN AGAINST GM MOSQUITOES
Indian public health experts are not excited by the news that American scientists have created GM mosquitoes to help fight malaria, saying it had been tried in India in the past and abandoned as a failure. Said P. K. Rajagopalan, a scientist who was associated with the aborted Indo-US project, 'Uncontrolled release of GM organisms to wipe out traditional mosquitoes ... raises serious questions on ecosystems and public health.' He added that he did not rule out the possibility of released GM insects becoming carriers of a human disease 'they were never before able to transmit'. He also said he hoped India did not 'once again become a testing ground for this dubious technology.'
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7685

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CAMPAIGNS OF THE MONTH
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+ *URGENT* - TELL FDA: NO FOOD FROM CLONES!
The US Food and Drug Administration needs to hear you don't want food from animal clones - a public comment period originally until April 2 has now been extended so there is STILL TIME TO COMMENT.
http://ga3.org/campaign/Cloning

+ SIGN THE MILLION-SIGNATURE PETITION AGAINST GM RICE
Go to the 'Week of Rice Action' - WORA - webpage and sign on to show your support via http://www.panap.net

+ BERKELEY: DON'T SIGN THE BP DEAL!
Sign the petition at
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/147963846

+ SIGN GLOBAL APPEAL AGAINST PATENTS ON SEEDS
http://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=56&Itemid=39

+ HELP STOP POLAND'S GMO ACT
Please ask Polish Parliamentarians and Senators to reject the proposed new GMO Act, which allows for the planting of commercial GM crops in GM-free zones.
http://icppc.pl/pl/gmo/open_letter.php

+ SIGN PETITION AGAINST GM POTATO TRIALS IN YORKSHIRE, UK
http://www.hedonagainstgm.org.uk/

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HEALTH EFFECTS OF GMOs / FOOD SAFETY
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+ NEW STUDY SHOWS GM MAIZE CAUSES LIVER AND KIDNEY TOXICITY
A study has been released showing that Monsanto used incomplete data to obtain approval of its GM maize MON863 and that laboratory rats fed with the maize showed kidney and liver toxicity.

The study, published in the journal 'Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology', analysed results of safety tests submitted by Monsanto when the company was seeking authorisation to market the maize. The data shows that MON863 poses significant health risks. Nonetheless, the maize was approved for release into the environment and for consumption. The incriminating evidence was forced into the open by Greenpeace following a court case.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7637
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7638
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7658
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7665

Abstract of the study:
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7650

Full paper available as a pdf file at http://www.agbios.com/docroot/decdocs/05-184-001.pdf

or as a pdf attachment from Dr Brian John This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

+ GM CROPS KILLING BEES?
Pennsylvania beekeeper John McDonald and the Sierra Club are among those who think that Bt crops could be responsible for the massive die-off of bees in the US. The die-off is instantaneous, not spreading at the slower pace of conventional disease.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7624
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7670
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7676

+ EINSTEIN ON BEES
'If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe then man would only have four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.' - Albert Einstein

+ CLONED MEAT COULD BE ALLOWED IN EU
The prospect of cloned meat being sold in Europe drew nearer after the EU's food safety authority was asked to rule on the matter. The US approved in principle meat and milk from cloned animals for consumption last year.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7613

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GM BANS / RESTRICTIONS
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+ U.S. JUDGE ORDERS IMMEDIATE HALT TO SALES OF GM ALFALFA SEED
A federal judge has ordered an immediate halt to sales of GM alfalfa seed. The ruling by US District Judge Charles Breyer follows his decision last month that the US Dept of Agriculture had not fulfilled a requirement to prepare a full environmental impact statement before approving the crop's commercial release in June 2005.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7630

+ WITHDRAWAL OF MONSANTO GM MAIZE ORDERED BY PHILIPPINES AG SECRETARY
Philippines Ag Secretary Arthur Yap said he had ordered the Bureau of Plant Industry to withdraw its approval for Monsanto's GM maize MON 863. But pressure has been applied to reverse his order.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7698
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7712

+ ANDHRA PRADESH AG DEPT WARNS MOST FARMERS AGAINST BT COTTON
The Agriculture Commissioner in the Indian State of Andhra Pradesh has said the introduction of GM crops, combined with climate change, is resulting in new pest problems. The State's Agricultural Dept has cautioned rainfed farmers against opting for Bt cotton for this reason. In Andhra Pradesh, about 78% of cotton is rainfed.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7703

+ FARMERS WARNED NOT TO GRAZE CATTLE ON BT COTTON
A notice issued to farmers by the Animal Husbandry officials of Adilabad district, India, marks the first occasion that Indian officials have admitted the toxic effects of Bt cotton on animals: 'It has come to our notice that in several blocks of the district, animals are falling sick after grazing on Bt cotton fields ... because of a yet-unidentified toxic material in these plants, it has come to our notice that animals which are grazing on these fields are exhibiting symptoms like shivers, convulsions, running nose, bloat, bloody diarrhea etc., and are dying. Therefore, we appeal to farmers not to graze their animals on Bt cotton fields...'
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7614
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7596
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7689
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7694
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7718

+ ORISSA: 1,727 VILLAGES DECLARED GM-FREE
700 newly elected representatives of Panchayats (village assemblies) in Orissa, India, and the Governing Body members of Orissa Nari Samaj - a confederation of 53 block-level tribal women's organizations - have taken an oath not to cultivate GM crops.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7692

+ FRESH APPROVALS OF BT COTTON BLOCKED IN INDIA
The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) has withheld any fresh approval of Bt cotton for commercial cultivation. GEAC is awaiting orders from the Supreme Court, which in response to a public interest lawsuit, has directed that no new GM crop field trials should be allowed until the case is settled.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7643

+ INDIA: PMK OPPOSES USE OF GM SEEDS
The PMK, a political ally of the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, has urged the government to ensure that GM seeds are not used in the state and asked farmers to resist moves to introduce them. PMK is the first political party in India to take an unambiguous stand against GM crops.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7594
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7588

+ EURO PARLIAMENT VOTES TO PROTECT ORGANICS
The European Parliament has rejected a proposal to allow traces of GMOs up to 0.9% in organic food. The result of the vote is a clear indication from European elected representatives that the right to GM-free food is non-negotiable.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7705

+ NEW SETBACK FOR GM CROPS IN EUROPE
Members of the European parliament have blocked a resolution calling for greater use of GM technology.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7636

+ BIOTECH INDUSTRY WITHDRAWS GM FOODS
The biotech industry has withdrawn from sale in Europe five GM foods and crops, including the first GM crop grown in Europe. Friends of the Earth Europe has highlighted this as further proof that GM crops are failing. A list of the withdrawn crops is at:
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7667

+ BLOW FOR FIRST AFRICAN TRIALS OF GM CASSAVA
The South African GM regulatory authority, the Executive Council (EC), has refused to allow open field trials of GM cassava. Late last year, the EC also rejected an application to conduct experiments involving GM sorghum. South Africa has a de facto moratorium on the approval of all new GM varieties for import.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7669

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BIOFUELS
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+ SA REJECTS WORLD'S FIRST GM MAIZE FOR BIOFUELS
South Africa's regulatory authority has rejected Syngenta's application to grow GM maize for fuel ethanol on biosafety grounds. This was the first GM industrial crop for which commercial approval has been sought anywhere in the world.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7683

+ THE REAL AGENDA BEHIND BIOFUELS
Here's a rough translation from the Portuguese of the revealing words of Hector Huergo - the president of the Argentinean Biofuels and Hydrogen Association, and a promoter of GM soy in Argentina. He was speaking at a conference in Buenos Aires at which the keynote speaker was Monsanto's vice president, Robert Fraley: 'Friends, the only thing that matters is to do businesses. Because the poor will continue to exist, they will have to be the concern of the NGOs (sic). And now the great business will come from biofuels. Once again behind the promises to solve the problems of climate change is hidden the only objective, which is to get a great slice of the future businesses.'

READ THE PORTUGUESE ORIGINAL HERE:
http://www.pagina12.com.ar:80/diario/suplementos/futuro/13-1675-2007-03-24.htm

+ PROTESTS AT UC BERKELEY
The firestorm of controversy over the $500 million biofuel pact tying UC Berkeley to one of the world's biggest and most criticized oil giants has intensified, with a teach-in, a faculty forum, a demonstration, and arrests. According to UC Berkeley historian Iain Boal, BP's half-billion dollar deal is massive greenwashing by a corrupt corporation - supported by a governor eager 'to keep his eight Hummers running on alcohol.' For good pictures and links to videos of speeches etc.:
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/03/04/18372601.php

+ GM RESEARCH DOMINATES BP-BERKELEY PARTNERSHIP
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7602

+ BERKELEY UC FACULTY CRITICAL OF BP DEAL
The BP-Berkeley deal took a pounding at a faculty forum, with a host of speakers critical of the unprecedented partnership. The forum, sponsored by University of California's Academic Senate, was marked by biting criticism from the floor and a brilliant speech from Dr Ignacio Chapela. For a webcast of the proceedings: http://webcast.berkeley.edu/event_details.php?webcastid=19207&p=1&ipp=15&category=

+ SPEECH BY CHAPELA AT UC BERKELEY SENATE
Worth reading in full:
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7617

+ BRAZIL: THOUSANDS PROTEST BUSH, AGROFUELS
On March 8, thousands of Brazilians marched to celebrate women's day and protest the visit to Brazil of US president George W. Bush. Bush used his trip to promote a plan for the region to increase its production of ethanol to meet US fuel needs.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7633
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7622

'... the grain required to make enough ethanol to fill an SUV tank is enough to feed a person for a whole year.' - WorldWatch Institute founder Lester Brown
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7633

+ FALLOUT FROM THE NEW MANHATTAN PROJECT
EXCERPT from great article for CounterPunch on the BP-Berkeley deal to develop biofuels with GM:

One of the first casualties of the deal is already clear - the English language. ... Genetically modified organisms and biotechnology are nowhere to be seen. The brief era of 'biotech' is over, it seems; a new age of 'synthetic biology' is dawning. ...

It is not by accident that the parties to the BP-Berkeley deal borrow their rhetorical strategies from their counterparts in the military and nuclear fields. The UC scientists and administrators begin the proposal by invoking, in the most effusive terms, the Manhattan Project [to make the atom bomb]. ... But that project is properly remembered for its secret, reckless decision-making. ...

Here, then, are some questions: What is modern science that its shining hour was the Manhattan Project, a secret project to build a weapon of mass murder? What is modern science that it flourishes in secrecy? ...
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7700

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PHARMA CROPS
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+ GM RICE CAN'T CURE DIARRHOEA
Attempts at introducing GM rice as a pharmaceutical crop to treat diarrhoea in African children is unnecessary and a calculated move to distract from ongoing global programmes to save children suffering from the disease, says Nnimmo Bassey, Director of Environmental Rights Action in Nigeria.

A new variety of GM rice containing human genes is set to be approved by the US Dept of Agriculture (USDA) for large-scale planting in Kansas, USA after two other states barred such plantings. Ventria Bioscience announced that the rice will be used in oral rehydration solutions to treat diarrhoea and as supplements in yogurt, sports drinks and granola bars.

Environmental Rights Action points out that diarrhoea has well-known causes (such as contaminated drinking water) and proven, inexpensive solutions. And in a clinical trial of the GM rice held in Peru, there were reports of infants suffering serious allergic reactions, causing the Peruvian government to launch an inquiry.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7663
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7651
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7589

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ALTERNATIVES TO GM
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+ MORE EVIDENCE ORGANIC FOOD GOOD FOR YOU
The scientific evidence is growing that organic food is better for you, reports Peter Melchett, but GM lobbyists and politicians wedded to the food industry are doing their best to deny it.
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/peter_melchett/2007/03/is_organic_food_really_healthi.html

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CORPORATE TAKEOVER
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+ AUSTRALIA: CSIRO AXES EXPERT WHO CRITICISED GM CROPS
One of Australia's top organic farming experts, Dr Maarten Stapper, has been dumped by CSIRO, amid allegations he was bullied by executive management for criticising GM crops. Although CSIRO is ostensibly publicly funded, in reality it is highly industrially aligned. One of its most lucrative deals is with Bayer CropScience.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7661
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7691

+ GOVT OF INDIA DOLES OUT CORPORATE WELFARE FOR GM CROPS
While Indian farmers whose GM cotton crops have failed continue to commit suicide in vast numbers, the government has announced a special subsidy package to promote GM crops in the country.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7619

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CORPORATE CRIMES
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+ FORMER-MONSANTO EXEC FINED FOR BRIBE
A former executive at Monsanto has been fined $30,000 for bribing an Indonesian official in an unsuccessful bid to repeal an environmental rule, the US Securities and Exchange Commission said. Charles M. Martin, Monsanto's former government affairs director in Asia, violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in 2002 when he told a consultant to pay a senior Indonesian environmental official $50,000, the SEC said. Monsanto was seeking the repeal of a rule requiring it to assess the environmental impact before planting GM cottonseed.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7607

NB Charles Martin now heads the US Chamber of Commerce in China, of which Monsanto is a paid-up member. Note the following statement by Martin, quoted by the Wall Street Journal: 'When the government plays classical music, we play classical music; when it plays jazz, we play jazz; if it plays bribery, we play bribery; but if it plays clean, that is what we like.'

+ EYEWITNESS TO CORPORATE CRIME GAGGED
The Ecologist has published online a special investigation into how Monsanto may escape liability for toxic tips in Wales. The story involves attempts to gag an eyewitness.
http://www.theecologist.org/news_detail.asp?content_id=820

+ SICK PEOPLE USED AS LAB RATS IN GM TRIALS
An article in the Independent on Sunday (UK) reports on the Russian GM potato human feeding studies carried out on hospital patients.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7593

+ HOW GM CORPORATIONS KILL 'INCONVENIENT' RESEARCH
An interview published on a Russian news website provides chilling evidence of how the biotech industry kills off 'inconvenient' GM research and ensures that independent scientists are silenced.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7621

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CONTAMINATION
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+ MULTIPLE CONTAMINATION OF US RICE
Four different Bayer GM rice varieties have been discovered in US long-grain rice stocks. The four GM traits now known to be in the supply are: LL601, LL62, LL06 and (most recently) LL604. In addition, there are still other 'mystery (GM) traits'. All the contamination appears to be the result of GM rice trials.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7707
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7592

+ USA RICE FEDERATION SAYS 'NO!' TO RICE TRIALS
USA Rice Federation has filed comments with the US Dept of Agriculture asking 'in the strongest possible terms that the permit for Ventria [Bioscience]'s pharmaceutical rice be denied.' 'If Ventria's pharmaceutical rice were to escape into the commercial rice supply, the financial devastation to the US rice industry would likely be absolute,' USA Rice Federation says.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7708

+ BASF TAKES $1-9 MILLION HIT FROM GM CONTAMINATION
BASF is pulling one of its Clearfield rice seeds off the market. USDA ordered the company to do so after BASF found GM contamination in the popular rice variety. BASF estimated losses to the company from the incident at between $1-9 million dollars.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7603
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7598

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GM POTATOES
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+ DUTCH COUNCIL OF STATE ORDERS DESTRUCTION OF BASF GM POTATO TRIAL
The Council of State in the Netherlands has judged in an appeal by Greenpeace that the field trials of BASF's GM potatoes were illegally permitted by the government and must be destroyed.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7635

+ GM SPUDS HAVE HAD THEIR CHIPS AS IRISH TRIALS STOPPED
BASF has abandoned its plans to grow GM potatoes in Ireland. It is now opting to grow them in Britain where there are fewer restrictions.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7634

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ANIMAL BIOTECH
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+ FDA 'CHERRY-PICKED EVIDENCE' TO PUSH THROUGH CLONED FOODS
The US FDA says that food from clones is safe, but a new report from the Center for Food Safety shows that the FDA found virtually no scientific studies to support the commercial release of these experimental foods. FDA found no studies on meat from cloned pigs; meat or milk from cloned goats; meat from cloned cows; or milk from offspring of cloned cows. FDA cites just three peer-reviewed studies on milk from cloned cows; all three studies showed differences in milk from clones that should have prompted further research.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7686

+ PROF SCHUBERT ON CLONED FOOD
David Schubert, a Professor in the Cellular Neurobiology Laboratory at The Salk Institute, writes in Nature Biotechnology that, 'if there is any increase in disease associated with the consumption of clonal animals, it will be impossible to detect against the normal background of disease unless the disease is unique or appears in a novel cohort...'
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7715

+ SCIENTISTS CREATE SHEEP THAT IS 15% HUMAN
Scientists at the University of Nevada have created the world's first human-sheep chimera - which has the body of a sheep and half-human organs. The organs are intended for transplant into humans. There are fears that such transplants could enable viruses to pass from animals to humans. Dr Patrick Dixon, an international lecturer on biological trends, warned: 'Many silent viruses could create a biological nightmare in humans. Mutant animal viruses are a real threat, as we have seen with HIV.'
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7697

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RESISTANCE
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+ HAWAIIANS, FARMERS PUSH FOR BAN ON GM TARO
Upset over the death of a bill that would ban genetic modification of the taro plant, farmers and Native Hawaiians shouted down chief lawmakers in a noisy protest at the state Capitol.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7713

+ FRANCE: HUNGER STRIKE AGAINST GMOs
In France, activists are conducting a protest fast to ask the government to place a moratorium on the cultivation of GMOs.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7664

+ INDIA: 148 VILLAGES PLEDGE TO STAY GM-FREE
Around 7,000 farmers from 148 villages in Uttar Pradesh have pledged not to cultivate GM crops and instead to practice organic farming.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7680

+ ASIA: WEEK OF RICE ACTION
The Week of Rice Action (WORA) 2007 has been inaugurated amidst much celebration in Bangladesh. Three thousand farmers from across the country chanted slogans such as 'Preserve local seeds!', 'No GMO!', and 'We will give our blood but not our seeds!'
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7588
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7631

Show your support:
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7677

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LOBBYWATCH
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+ HOW CORPORATIONS DENY CONSUMER PROTECTION
A brilliant article (well worth reading in full) identifies the dubious but commonly used rhetorical tactics by which big business can thwart consumer interests. Nearly all the strategies referred to - from industry front groups and fakery, to 'muddying the waters' and 'poisoning the well' - will be familiar to those following the activities of pro-GM lobbyists. Equally familiar from the GM debate are many actors in the US that the author names as deployers of such tactics on behalf of the MNCs that back them.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7699

+ LM-CONNECTED DIRECTOR BEHIND 'GLOBAL WARMING SWINDLE'
Channel 4 in the UK recently screened what it called a 'polemical and thought-provoking documentary' - 'The Great Global Warming Swindle'. But the director, Martin Durkin, has a long history of misleading people on science and technology issues, including GM. He also connects closely to the GM-supporting, environmentalist-hating LM network.

A leading US climate scientist is considering legal action after he says he was duped into appearing in Durkin's latest documentary. Carl Wunsch, professor of physical oceanography at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said the film was 'as close to pure propaganda as anything since World War Two'.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7626
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7654
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7655

+ GM WATCH EDITOR ON 'ANIMAL FARM'
The Ecologist interviewed Jonathan Matthews from GM Watch about some of the arguments advanced in Channel 4's pro-GM documentary 'Animal Farm'.
http://www.theecologist.org/archive_detail.asp?content_id=818

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COMPANY NEWS
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+ AUSTRALIAN GM WHEAT FIRM GOES BELLY-UP - 'STATE WON'T HELP US'
A Perth biotech firm is complaining it faces closure after failing to secure Western Australia state government funds to develop a GM salt-tolerant variety of wheat.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7657

+ KEY MONSANTO PATENT REJECTED
The US Patent and Trademark Office has rejected a key patent in Monsanto's Roundup Ready arsenal, possibly stripping the agribusiness giant of its power to license the technology to farmers.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7595

+ BASF AND MONSANTO ANNOUNCE COLLABORATION
BASF and Monsanto said they will enter an agreement to develop GM corn, soybeans, cotton and canola.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7668

+ MONSANTO A RISKY INVESTMENT
An investment analyst for financial education company The Motley Fool has warned that Monsanto is a lot riskier than some investors might want to believe.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7679

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LABELLING
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+ CANADA: COST TO LABEL GM FOOD OVERBLOWN
Mandatory labelling of GM foods would cost far less than the food industry has claimed, a new study commissioned by Quebec's Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food reveals. Experience also shows that labelling imposes no costs on the consumer.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7656

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NEW BOOK
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+ JEFFREY SMITH'S NEW BOOK
New book from the author of Seeds of Deception: Genetic Roulette: The Documented Health Risks of Genetically Engineered Foods.
http://www.lobbywatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=7615