Is the tide turning against GMO's?
Tuesday September 7, 3:05 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: Consumer Alert
Consumer Alert: ADM -- Specialty Market to the Rich
WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The following op-ed piece is by Frances B. Smith, Executive Director of Consumer Alert:
Archer Daniels Midland Co. -- fond of touting itself as ``Supermarket to the World' -- should change its slogan to ``Specialty Market to the Rich of the World.' ADM recently warned its grain suppliers they would have to segregate crops produced from biotechnology from those produced conventionally. Not only would this redundancy cause prices to rise significantly for consumers on a whole range of food products, but reactions like ADM's could spread and grind to a halt the potential benefits that biotechnology could bring to millions of starving and malnourished people in developing countries.
ADM's action came in the wake of hysteria in Europe fueled by anti- biotechnology activists and fanned by tabloid-type media coverage. The anti- biotech campaigns have moved quickly to the U.S. and Canada. Leading the charge was Greenpeace, whose first targets were baby food producers -- Gerber, for one -- whom they scared into promising ``never ever to do it again, mommy,' that is, to use food produced through biotechnology in its baby foods. Gerber is going to use ``organic' food instead, even though there is no scientific evidence that organically grown food is safer, purer, or more healthful than conventionally grown or bio-engineered food. Indeed, agronomists point to Centers for Disease Control data showing fresh, unprocessed organic foodstuffs may have a higher incidence of food-borne pathogens.
Some large companies before Gerber had already caved in to the fear- mongering campaigns against foods produced through biotechnology, even though they know and have stated publicly that there is no scientific justification for their actions. As ADM said in its statement, the company ``remains supportive of the science and safety' of bioengineered crops, but it was worried about customers abroad who are concerned about gene-altered crops. ADM's buckling under, however, speaks more loudly than its ``supportive' words to customers and consumers and is likely to provide fertile ground for activists to make further inroads. Indeed, Reuters quotes European activists as declaring ``victory' in response to ADM's cave-in.
Critical public health benefits that biotechnology can offer could be set back through companies' playing into the hands of Greenpeace, et al. If biotechnology research proceeds at its current pace, the human and environmental benefits of agricultural biotechnology could be dramatic and widespread in the near future. That would mean higher crop yields and a likely reduction in pesticide usage. Biotechnology is the best hope we have of meeting the growing food demands of a world population that will increase by at least 50 percent in the next several years. If we don't increase yields on the land already being farmed, the alternative is to put more land into production -- lands that now represent forests and wildlife areas.
Among the possibilities of biotechnology are drought resistant crops and plants resistant to aluminum toxicity, which cuts crop yields in vast regions of the world, primarily in developing countries. Enhanced nutritional levels of staple crops can prevent diseases that are life-threatening or debilitating. In just one example, gene-altered rice has been enhanced with Vitamin A and could help eradicate blindness, caused by a deficiency of that vitamin, in millions of children.
Currently, consumers know little about those benefits. Activist groups that are campaigning against this new technology in countries across the world ignore the positive and instead promote images of fear and dread to depict the products of biotechnology. It is not a food safety issue, however. It is an issue of a new technology that rubs against the values and tastes of some, who, in satisfying their own preferences, would deny biotechnology's benefits to the world.
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