GE Alfalfa

For several years, the Center for Food Safety, the Cornucopia Institute and others have been engaged in a court case fighting the release of Monsanto's genetically engineered alfalfa. Last week, to the favor of the biotech industry, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the agency will fully deregulate the controversial seed. As you would expect, folks in the organic community are more than disappointed. Michael Pollan tweeted that the decision to cave is a "disaster for organic agriculture" and all the foodies are buzzing about the potential contamination and complications.

Because of the sensational claims made on both sides of the GMO debate, I decided to contact Associate Professor Scott Glenn, from the University of Maryland, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, a professor I've had the pleasure of learning from. His research and teaching focuses on the biology and management of perennial weeds and his perspective on conventional farming methods has helped me understand the merit in arguments for and against the innovation. Glenn explained:

"Roundup Ready® Alfalfa was deregulated (approved) [in April 2004] but shortly thereafter, several activist groups took [Monsanto and Forage Genetics International] to court stating that the pollen from the GE alfalfa would contaminate organically grown alfalfa. There was a court decision to have further scientific studies to determine if this was a valid issue. Recently, the results of those studies have been released and they indicate that there is no valid scientific evidence to suggest that this would be a problem. Furthermore, if contamination does occur it would be at an extremely low level and, according to a recent ruling, that alfalfa crop would not lose its status as organically grown.

Alfalfa is a perennial forage crop that is primarily cross pollinated. All producers of alfalfa as a forage (organic and conventional) want to harvest alfalfa (including grazing) in bud to early bloom, so if managed right it should not be producing pollen. However, sometimes due to poor management or bad conditions some pollen may be produced. However, the only time those genes would be incorporated in to the genetic makeup of non-Roundup Ready alfalfa is if that alfalfa was allowed to fertilize and go to seed. This could take place in alfalfa that is grown in the wild (very rare, but definitely not part of an organic system) or during the production of commercial seed. Commercial seed production (both organic and conventional) is grown under very closed, highly monitored conditions. Major precautions are taken to prevent extraneous pollen from fertilizing the cultivars of alfalfa that they are producing. There are strict protocols in place such as not having any other alfalfa fields (organic or conventional) within a specific area ('pollen-free zone') surrounding the alfalfa seed field."

So the case, as it has been presented, against GE alfalfa is not scientifically strong enough to limit or eliminate its use and Montsanto does not intend to persecute accidental cross-contaminations but perhaps the devil isn't in the details of this one. Perhaps the greenies, who may disown me after this post, need to broaden the argument, re-organize and out-innovate. What I mean is, the organic opposition comes across as anti-progress and innovation, and if that is the case, we're not going to win much support from the conventional side or even the civilian masses. Instead of putting our energy into the fight against a certain seed, let's put it into the race for a solution and accept the fact that we may need to bend a little here and there to find it. Isn't the bigger problem here the rampid use of products containing the herbicide glyphosate and the effect that has on everyone and everything?

Still Undecided About GMOs?

Me too.

On one hand, Genetically Modified Organisms seem great. Altered seeds like Bt Cotton produce plants that protect themselves from their biggest pest therefore reducing the need for insecticides. On both hands, Roundup Ready seeds that allow big farms to spray entire fields with herbicides, which is convenient for them and reduces the need for tilling and the accompanying soil compaction, but has also eradicated Vitamin A-rich weeds in nations whose people depend on them. Then there is Golden Rice - Monsanto's promise to feed and nourish the Vitamin A-deficient folks. While I remain undecided on modified seeds and the controversial patent laws that accompany any discussions around them, I just discovered a whole other wing of GMOs to ponder: Bird Flu Resistant Chickens. Popular Science reports:

Generating flu-resistant birds may be more effective than giving vaccinations to an entire flock, said Dr. Laurence Tiley, a veterinarian and lecturer in molecular virology at the University of Cambridge, England, one of the authors of the chicken study. Vaccinated birds may not develop flu, but the virus can still replicate in their bodies and be transmitted to other unvaccinated fowl, he explained in a podcast with the journal Science, which publishes the study tomorrow. Besides, just like with human influenza, there are plenty of strains, and vaccines don’t cover all of them.

The new genetic modification is basically the opposite — birds will still get sick and die, but they won’t pass on the virus to other birds, a major advancement for animals that generally live in very close quarters. The lack of transmission also means the virus will be less likely to spread to people.

Read more here and here.

Slow Season!

Warmest wishes and deepest apologies for the lack of posts lately. The holidays are a busy time of year around here! Please feel free to spend some of your Internet-browsing hours looking through old posts here on Just Saying or on the following sites/blogs/links/stories that have captured our attention lately:

Mental_Floss: 18 Fun Facts About Your Favorite Christmas TV Specials

MSN 'A Year of Mystery Meat' - Read about the experiences of a Chicago area public school employee who ate school lunch every day for a year

Green-Up Your Computer with ECO BUTTON

Recent GMO News - Bt Cotton Failures in India (also here)

Get to know The Fabulous Beekman Boys or just watch Farmer John's Goat Cam!

And if those happy Beekman goats made your heart grow three sizes, consider making an end-of-year donation to one of our favorite organizations, Heifer International, to gift a goat or a share of one. Learn more and donate here.

GM tomato boasts 45 days of freshness

This is being presented as a good thing but I'm not so sure. The Daily Mail reports that researchers at the National Institute of Plant Genome Research in New Dehli have discovered that surpressing two enzymes, known as A-Man and B-Hex, in tomatoes can extend their shelf-life to upwards of 45 days. I suppose this is good news for farmers who lose chunks of their harvest due to rotting but on the other hand, these genetically modified seeds/organisms will undoubtedly be controlled by some corporation (we hate), will be expensive for farmers, fuel the industrialized food market, and their use could lead to tougher tomatoes with further diminished taste and nutritional value. Ugh.

Two thumbs down, Monsanto

A quick lesson about GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms also called GEOs, Genetically Engineered Organisms) and why we don't like them:

Techniques, generally known as recombinant DNA technology, combine DNA molecules from different sources into one molecule to create a new set of genes. The new DNA is then transferred into an organism, like a seed, giving it modified, novel and desirable genes like, in the case of corn and soybean seeds: resistance to the pests, resistance to harsh environmental conditions, and resistance to the powerful herbicide: Roundup. Monsanto owns the Roundup Ready trait. And Roundup. And almost all (nine out of ten) soybeans today carry the Roundup Ready trait. Can you say M-m-m-m-monopoly?

So here's what happens:

Farmers have little choice but to use these seeds. Once they do, they have to come back to Monsanto for more because A) the powerful herbicide has basically killed everything in its path and B) it is illegal to save seeds and use them again. Not to mention Monsanto's Roundup Ready corn crops and herbicide resistant soybean crops have disrupted the agricultural system - causing soil erosion, nitrate leeching, and water contamination.

Why bring this up today, you ask? Because of a recent broadcast on NPR about how seed licensing continues to screw farmers. Read the transcript here or listen to it here. Very uncool, Monsanto (Dupont, Syngenta, and Groupe Limagrain).

How do you feel about GMOs? Frankenfoods?

In case you have never heard of such a thing, GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organisms and I get the sense that we are all eating them. Often. "Frakenfoods" is just another term for them. From James E. McWilliams recent Slate post:

"A genetically modified crop results from the laboratory insertion of a gene from one organism into the DNA sequence of another in order to confer an advantageous trait such as insect resistance, drought tolerance, or herbicide resistance. Today almost 90 percent of soy crops and 80 percent of corn crops in the United States sprout from genetically engineered seeds. Forty-five million acres of land worldwide contain genetically engineered crops. From the perspective of commercial agriculture, the technology has been seamlessly assimilated into traditional farming routines."

I don't know enough about this topic to decide where I stand on all of this but encourage you to learn alongside me and spend a few minutes with McWilliams' article.