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Why the fear of GM Crops?
Indeed. One is forever hopeful. Here's further confirmation that it would be financial suicide to grow GM wheat... Reuters Top UK miller to cut N.America wheat if GM okayed Tuesday June 3, 1:26 pm ET By Ben Harding LONDON, June 3 (Reuters) - Britain's biggest flour miller Rank Hovis said on Tuesday it would stop using North American wheat if the United States or Canada began commercial planting of GM varieties as it might contaminate non-GM grain during shipment. Hovis' Wheat Director Peter Jones said if large-scale opposition to genetically modified (GM) food continued among Britons, Hovis would have to import high-protein grain from countries such as Germany or Australia to avoid gene altered material creeping into its bread. "If in a few years time the British public still felt the same way about GM when this wheat might be grown commercially, we wouldn't be able to use it," Jones told Reuters. Late last week, U.S. industry sources said tests revealed traces of GM material were finding its way into U.S. wheat supplies. "We say that the U.S. and Canada should beware. They export a lot of grain," Jones said. The United States and Canadian wheat accounts for about 40 percent of world exports of 98.3 million tonnes. GM wheat has yet to hit the market, but in January U.S. biotech giant Monsanto (NYSE:MON - News) announced plans to release a genetically modified spring wheat variety, which could potentially cripple North American wheat exports. Many countries that buy grain from the United States refuse to purchase GM varieties. Last week, the Canadian Wheat Board pleaded with Monsanto (Bombay:MNSN.BO - News) to drop its bid for regulatory approval of the GM grain. About 10 percent of the five million tonnes of grain Hovis bakes every year comes from the United States and Canada and is used in its higher-grade bread. Jones said Hovis already finds the odd piece soybean or corn in its North American wheat that was probably genetically modified, but was sifted out during processing. |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
Oz wrote: Jerry writes I hear and read that the European Union has safety concerns about growing genetically modified crops and the food produced from them. But I never hear details. So here is the question. What are the SPECIFIC fears of the European Union in regard to genetically modified crops? 1) A paranoid population. (really) a population that got bitten by the mad cow and the blood supply tainted with aids while the "scientist" assure the paranoid population that it was all in their minds. 2) A useful trade blocking mechanism. Patents on life and artificially low government guaranteed farm loans are also useful US trade mechanisms. The other side is not going to sit and say ok hit me. -- Oz This post is worth absolutely nothing and is probably fallacious. Note: soon (maybe already) only posts via despammed.com will be accepted. |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
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Why the fear of GM Crops?
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Why the fear of GM Crops?
wrote in message ... So you dismiss the current and predictable problems? This might have been a little problem in a world with millions of little farmers. Now the world is turning into one mega farmer that uses the seed of one mega seed company and the pesticides of one mega biochemical company all using the same technological base. you seem to forget that conventional seed varieties have a short life, conventional seed production is a treatmill and new varieties are always needed. This differs from the GM scenario exactly how? Jim Webster |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
wrote in message ... wrote: Personally I would expect a roundup-resistant blackgrass to be found within a few years of a RR wheat being introduced. So would you still support the introduction of RR wheat? regards Marcus one problem: jointed goatgrass ... Both are primarily self-pollinated, however, a low level of cross pollination can occur (1 to 2%). Since wheat and jointed goatgrass both share similar genetic ... wheat.colostate.edu/steward.pdf Oz is in the UK, last time I was talking to him, jointed goatgrass is not a UK problem Jim Webster |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
Jim Webster writes
Oz is in the UK, last time I was talking to him, jointed goatgrass is not a UK problem Indeed, never seen it. However goatgrass genes are in many UK varieties, where it confers some resistance to eyespot. -- Oz This post is worth absolutely nothing and is probably fallacious. Note: soon (maybe already) only posts via despammed.com will be accepted. |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
Torsten Brinch wrote in message . ..
On 3 Jun 2003 11:48:48 -0700, (Jerry) wrote: Torsten Brinch wrote in message . .. .. My argument still stands: In reality, the European Union has approved several genetically modified crops, and is having no particular safety concerns in regards to that. In contrast to this, you appear to be have come to the opposite impression. Because of something you heard and read. QED, you have been misinformed. If you don't base your conclusions on things you hear and read, what do you base them on? ROFL. How conveniently missing the point you are. I've seen a preponderance of information coming out of Europe that they are scared of American gm crops for safety reasons. Granted, alot of that information has come from left wing enviromental whackos. But the EU certainly hasn't done much to give any different impression. And if they aren't shutting out American grain due to saftey concerns, what is the real reason? That is what I want to hear them say. I just want to hear the truth. My argument still stands: In reality, the European Union has approved, and is importing genetically modified Amaerican grain crops, and is having no particular safety concerns in regards to that. In contrast to this, your impression is that EU is shutting out American GMO grain due to safety concerns. Ergo, you have been misinformed. Probably you just don't appreciate how important it is to the European Union, that goods and produce can be traded freely across internal borders within the EU, unimpeded by national legislation imposed by individual Member States. How could I not recognize the importance of free trade across internal borders? Remember, I'm an American. .. Good, then why not go ahead, try use that recognition to understand EU policy regarding GMO. Torsten, I'm not missing the point. I'm trying to force the issue. Am I wrong about the reasons given in the press for EU import restrictions. Are the real reasons being given? You used that phrase "In reality..." again. You are correct. In reality, the grain embargoes have never been about safety from the EU governing body's point. They have only used that as a smoke screen for the real issue, which was protecting markets for their producers. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the EU approves gm grains for export at about the same rate that the technology becomes available to EU farmers and they adopt it. |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
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Why the fear of GM Crops?
Jerry writes
A patent on life is not legally feasible because life has already been created. You are using hyperbole. You are really talking about patents on specific, man made (not naturally occurring)cultivars. And it would be stupid to use a patent as a trade blocking mechanism. To be profitable, one would need their patented product traded liberally so as to reap liscensing revenue. People have been patenting all sorts of genes all over. If patenting is to be allowed to do this then it's worth noting that patents run out, and surprisingly quickly. So in a way the more that get patented, almost always without any short term chance of being used commercially, then the more that fall off of patent in 30 years and counting. -- Oz This post is worth absolutely nothing and is probably fallacious. Note: soon (maybe already) only posts via despammed.com will be accepted. |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
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Why the fear of GM Crops?
wrote in message ... and suddenly British Ministers are saying that the EU will not let us block GM anyway The Times, UK http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...699761,00.html June 02, 2003 Ministers briefed to back off GM crops By Valerie Elliott, Countryside Editor MINISTERS have been warned that they should not be too zealous in their support for GM crops because there are no immediate advantages to the country. Michael Meacher, a name doubtless totally unfamiliar to 90% of people on this list but UK Environment minister, pointed out that the UK is powerless to ban GM crops. Unless it can provide direct evidence to environment on human health. I would suggest that evidence capable of convincing the Commission will be impossible to find for those GM crops backed by French Companies Jim Webster |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
wrote in message ... Indeed. One is forever hopeful. Why? No-one would buy your product... Do you know of anyone, other than yourself and Monsanto, who wants this stuff? so far cumulative global consumption of GM soya is over 300 million toones. where are the bodies? GM is spreading and will cease to spread if it is shown to be uneconomic where it is grown, or it is proven to be dangerous. So far, appart from almost hysterial efforts of the antis, neither of these have been done Jim Webster |
Why the fear of GM Crops?
Jim Webster wrote: wrote in message ... Indeed. One is forever hopeful. Why? No-one would buy your product... Do you know of anyone, other than yourself and Monsanto, who wants this stuff? so far cumulative global consumption of GM soya is over 300 million toones. where are the bodies? GM is spreading and will cease to spread if it is shown to be uneconomic where it is grown, or it is proven to be dangerous. So far, appart from almost hysterial efforts of the antis, neither of these have been done Jim Webster A generic defense of GM products is like a generic defense of bacteria. Most bacteria do not kill you. You are doing the equivalent of defending all bacteria. Just because you can find example of no damage detected does not mean that all GM products are safe. Even more, some have already been proved dangerous and have been removed from the market before they could kill millions. Even traditional plant breeding can have unintended consequences There are plenty of examples of mistakes being made, including for example a mistake that could have produce a world wide famine with the failure of genes used worldwide for hybrid corn production. Traditional plant breeding at least has the safeguard, in most crop cases, of 10 to 15 years between the original cross and the final contact with a large number of consumers. Today one can GM incorporate, for example, allergenic peanut proteins into potatoes. Would that be safe? Today one can incorporate genes coding for alkaloids or many other drugs into bananas or cassava. Should we do it? Should we deny percentages of pollination by wind and insects even in cases where the crop species is not open pollinated? Should we deny crosspolinization between many crops and many of their wild weedy relatives? Should we deny the impossibility of gene recall? And what about the tools of Genetic modification? Who is going to guarantee their safe use? You argue that we have not seen the deleterious effects of GM crops. That is difficult to prove and getting more difficult to prove by the day. One can visually detect the first drop of milk in a cup of tea, but once the cup of tea has that first few drops of milk, one can not easily detect any additional milk. The background 'noise' does not let us see any obvious changes. Allergies are in the increase and we do not why. Asthma is in the increase too. Is it an increase in cat population or is it the sneak GM of the omnipresent soybean. or is it because traditional breeding has modified wheat proteins so much that they do not resemble the old cereal? Is a world with no safguards, privatized, with laws written by monsanto and Kraft foods, and with engineers and wallstreet salesmen that often fool even people that once in a while read a science article or two and that have totally lobotomized a US population that has less scientific understanding than the europeans during the middle ages. |
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