Week 8 gmo

Research, development, and technology – 1940s-1970s

Increased agricultural production around the worldNew view for ag.- commercial sector than a

subsistence oneIndia Famine –plant breeding, irrigation,

agrochemicals…“Saving a billion people from starvation”

High-yielding varieties of cereal grainsExpansion of irrigation infrastructureModernization of management techniquesDistribution of hybrid seedsSynthetic fertilizers and pesticides

Semi-dwarf allowed countries like Mexico and India to be self-sufficient

Yields of rice and wheat doubled

Higher profits allowed farmers to expand

Instead of widespread famine, cereal and calorie availability per person increased by 30%

Wheat & rice cheaperRaised farmer’s incomeStimulated rural nonfarm

economy – less poor families

Better nutrition

Depletion of groundwaterIncreased monoculturesExcessive and inappropriate

use of fertilizers & pesticides

Increased income inequality and asset distribution

Owners of large farms were main adopters of new technologies (access to irrigation, fertilizers, seeds, and credit)

Small farmers unaffected or harmed – lower product prices, higher input prices…

Worsened absolute poverty?

Pre Revolution – Indian farmers grew diverse food crops

With new machinery, chemical pesticides and fertilizers, and hybrid seeds = now planted cash crops for export rather than local food consumption

Ex: Cotton – India opened its seed sector to international agribusiness (small farmers competing with giant cotton plantations and seed corporations)

What would have been the magnitude of hunger and poverty without the yield increases of the Green Revolution and with the same population growth?

How does this relate to what’s happening today with genetically modified foods? Green Revolution II?

Easing of world hunger?Development of crops that can be grown in marginal soil

Reduced strain on nonrenewable resources?

- Drought resistant crops- Salt-tolerant crops - Crops that make more efficient use of nitrogen and other nutrients

Reduced use of pesticides and herbicides?►Development of pest

resistant crops ►Reduced herbicide use

is better for the environment and reduces costs for farmers

Improved crop quality? Frost resistant crops Disease resistant crops Flood resistant crops

Improved nutritional quality?

Development of foods designed to meet specific nutritional goals

In 2002, Monsanto “came to the rescue” with higher-tech seeds than hybrid seeds from Green Revolution = GE Bt Cotton

“Miracle Seeds” would bring pest resistance and higher yields

Heavily marketed in India with film stars and religious deities

4-10 times more expensive than hybrid seeds

GE “terminators” – seeds had to be repurchased every season

Bt cotton required more pesticides spraying than indigenous cotton

Created new resistant pests – farmers were using 13 times more pesticides = more costs

Yields are low – Monsanto claims 1500kg per year but farmers were getting only 300-400 kg per year

Crop failures are common – farming no longer financially sustainable (can’t compete with cheap subsidized cotton)1994 – 1 lb of raw cotton = $1.102006 – 1 lb of raw cotton = $0.54

“GM Genocide” – In 2009 alone, 17,638 Indian farmers committed suicide

Vandana Shiva ‘s The Violence of the Green Revolution: the non-sustainability of chemical industrial agriculture and the unproductivity of chemical monocultures.

FrankenfoodsMonarch butterflyHoneybeesStarLink corn tacosGMO CanolaGMO SalmonGMO Wheat

Threatened by pollen in GMO maizeRapid rise of crops engineered

to withstand herbicidesMonarchs lay their eggs on

milkweed / caterpillars feed on milkweed

Milkweed thrives on edges of corn fieldsRoundup Ready – farmers used regularly

without worrying about impact on RR cropsMilkweed plunged 58%; Monarch egg

production decreased by 81%

Feb 2013 - 1500 colonies of honey bees disappear in Mexico

CCD – Colony Collapse Disorder Monoculture fields of GMO Bt corn inoculated with

pesticide called neonicoticoids (neurotoxins)Disrupts their ability to learn, remember, and find their

way back to the hiveCoat 142 million acres of corn, wheat, soy and cotton

seed and common ingredients in home gardening products

Contaminate the pollen and nectarMonocultures also fragment natural food supply 2006 - 30% of US bee population disappeared and

bees were imported; happening annually ever since

Bt – bacteria lives in the soil & naturally produces a toxin

Bt corn – pesticide in pollen2000 StarLink Bt corn designed

for stock feed Found in Taco Bell taco shellsNot approved for human

consumptionKraft recalled all taco shellsEx. of lack of control to monitor

modified corps entering food supply

Soybean and CanolaConcern that plants engineered to

withstand weed killers = super bugs & super weeds

Traditionally, farmers saved portionof seeds for next year’s crop

Growers using GE / RR crops must sign a contract agreeing not to save or reuse seeds

Court decisions have supported Monsanto’s right to prevent farmers from saving patented seeds

DNA genetically modified to produce growth hormonesfor its entire life

Grow at much faster rate thanwild salmon

FDA approved for human consumption in US

AquAdvantage – grow 2x rateFear – interbreeding with natural salmonClaims fish is sterile – only 95% actually sterileAvailable at grocery store by end of year

2013 – farmer sprays Roundup and finds green wheat stalks

Monsanto never asked for government approval to sell GMO wheat – growing it would violate the law

Tested positive as GMO wheat at Oregon StateIf rogue genes are present in America’s wheat

harvest – Japan, Korea, and other customerssay they won’t take it (millions of dollars)

Monsanto claims anti-biotechactivists stole the wheat and staged it as sabotage

Map indicating which states have pending GMO labeling bills or upcoming ballot initiatives. Credit: Right to Know.

Is supporting Organic standards the solution?

• USDA regulations allow food products that contain 95-100% certified organic ingredients

• Prohibit chemical fertilizers, synthetic substances, irradiation, sewer sludge or GMOs in production

• Prohibit antibiotic and synthetic hormone use in organic meat and poultry

• Require 100% organic feed for organic livestock

• Labeled “100% organic,” “organic,”or just “made with organic ingredients,” non-organic ingredients cannot be produced from GMOs

Is Education the Key?Is Education the Key?

DEBATE TIME!