[Biofuel] GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World
Science Society Sustainability http://www.i-sis.org.uk ISIS Press Release 26/01/05 GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]Rhea Gala A http://www.i-sis.org.uk/full/GMCFATWFull.phpfully referenced version of this article is posted on ISIS membersâ website. http://www.i-sis.org.uk/membership.phpDetails here GM cotton not environmentally friendly or safe Cotton is responsible for more than 10% of world pesticide use including some of the most hazardous, and 25% of all insecticide use. As weeds and insects become resistant, more and more pesticides are needed in a vicious circle that's a recipe for socio-economic, health and environmental disaster. About half of the GM cotton grown in the United States is herbicide resistant, and a comprehensive analysis by Dr. Charles Benbrook, a former Executive Director of the Board on Agriculture of the US National Academy of Science, confirmed that it required more herbicide than conventional varieties. Most GM cotton crops worldwide are engineered with Bt for resistance to insect pests and promoted by firms like Monsanto as environmentally friendly, because they need less pesticide. Monsanto's GM cotton 'Bollgard' carries the cry1Ac gene from soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis, (Bt) to produce a toxin that kills some cotton pests including the boll weevil. However, Bollgard does not resist sucking pests, such as aphids, that might also damage the crop and will therefore require subsidiary spraying. GM cotton not friendly to farmers GM cottonseed prices include a 'technology fee' that can go up every year, and is calculated on supposed savings from reduced pesticide use with the Bt variety in a particular location. All farmers growing Monsanto's Bt cotton sign a contract, called a Technology Use Agreement that is strictly applied. It stipulates that, Farmers cannot save seed for replanting Farmers are prohibited from supplying seed to anyone else Farmers must pay 120 times the technology fee, plus the legal fees of Monsanto, if they violate the contract. The Indonesian experience: A cautionary tale Indonesia was the first country in Southeast Asia to permit commercial GM farming against the warnings of scientists and activists on the environmental and socio-economic impacts. Fortunately, permission was granted only on a year-by-year basis, and the government reviewed the impact of the failed Bt crop. The review was scathing. This Gene Revolution, it said, seemed to be a modern tool for cementing farmers' dependence on seeds and transnational agrochemical corporations appearing in developing countries in different guises. The evidence from Indonesia is that GM crops are nothing more than a profit-motivated deployment of scientific power dedicated to sucking the blood of farmers. Monsanto promised Bt cotton would return 3-4 tonnes of cotton per hectare while requiring less pesticide and fertilizer than Kanesia, the local cotton variety. The seed was given to farmers with pesticide, herbicide, (including Roundup) and fertilizer as part of a credit scheme costing sixteen times more than non- Bt cotton. In fact, the average yield was 1.1 tonnes per hectare and 74% of the area planted to Bt-cotton produced less than one tonne per hectare. About 522 hectares experienced total crop failure. Despite that, the government extended approval for Bt cotton for another year; and the results were no better. In 2001 farmers signed contracts, but in 2002 the seed price rose and the cotton price slumped. Farmers had no choice but to shoulder the debt and sell at the company's rate; as a result, 76% of farmers who joined the credit scheme couldn't repay their debt and many burned their cotton in protest against the government and the company (see Broken promises, SiS 22 http://www.i-sis.org.uk/isisnews.php). In 2003, Monsanto halted operations saying that the Indonesian Government's decision to authorize Bt cotton production on a year-by-year basis had been a big obstacle to business investment. PT Monagro Kimia, a Monsanto subsidiary, was under investigation by the US Department of Justice and the Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission on suspicion that a payment of US$ 50 000 was made to Indonesian officials in 2002. In January 2005, Monsanto was found guilty of authorising the bribe and fined $1.5m (see http://www.i-sis.org.uk/GMCCHHTAL.phpGM cotton: corruption, hype, half-truths and lies, this series). Bt cotton in India: Lessons not learned Bt cotton entered commercial production in India in 2002 without comprehensive assessment for detrimental effects, and despite fierce protests by farmers and public interest organizations. Only six of India's 29 states in the south and the west of the country have had permission to plant Monsanto's Bt cotton. Four strains of Bt seed were available with at least one Indian variant of the licensed Monsanto varieties. A 2002
RE: [Biofuel] GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World
Greetings Concerned Cotton People, There is a simple answer to eliminating pests of all kinds from cotton and any other plant. It is called Vermiculture. Granted it is more trouble than just spraying on a chemical but it doesn't hurt any living thing and it helps the heck out of plants - they grow up to twice their normal rate and size. As to pests, they don't like the chemistry of the castings and therefore they stay away. None are actually killed but that is not the goal - as long as the pests leave your crops alone you are just fine. I realize many will sniff in a critical manner, but no one yet has designed a better system than this one which nature devised millions of years ago. By the way, in the end it is overall a cheaper than pesticide system because of yield increases, no environmental impact therefore no safeguards necessary, no soil erosion, and many more benefits. For the desperate and the believers among you, see the 2 attachments. Good luck, Ed Starr (for Mondays Thursdays-Main Ofc.) | Ed Starr | Star Marketing | 949-496-0050 | FAX 949-388-7828 | [EMAIL PROTECTED]| Dana Point, CA, USA (for Tue., Wed. Fri-Home Ofc.) | Ed Starr | Star Marketing | 619-749-9647 | FAX 619-749-9648 | [EMAIL PROTECTED] -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Keith Addison Sent: Friday, January 28, 2005 9:01 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [Biofuel] GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World The Institute of Science in Society Science Society Sustainability http://www.i-sis.org.uk ISIS Press Release 26/01/05 GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]Rhea Gala A http://www.i-sis.org.uk/full/GMCFATWFull.phpfully referenced version of this article is posted on ISIS members' website. http://www.i-sis.org.uk/membership.phpDetails here GM cotton not environmentally friendly or safe Cotton is responsible for more than 10% of world pesticide use including some of the most hazardous, and 25% of all insecticide use. As weeds and insects become resistant, more and more pesticides are needed in a vicious circle that's a recipe for socio-economic, health and environmental disaster. About half of the GM cotton grown in the United States is herbicide resistant, and a comprehensive analysis by Dr. Charles Benbrook, a former Executive Director of the Board on Agriculture of the US National Academy of Science, confirmed that it required more herbicide than conventional varieties. Most GM cotton crops worldwide are engineered with Bt for resistance to insect pests and promoted by firms like Monsanto as environmentally friendly, because they need less pesticide. Monsanto's GM cotton 'Bollgard' carries the cry1Ac gene from soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis, (Bt) to produce a toxin that kills some cotton pests including the boll weevil. However, Bollgard does not resist sucking pests, such as aphids, that might also damage the crop and will therefore require subsidiary spraying. GM cotton not friendly to farmers GM cottonseed prices include a 'technology fee' that can go up every year, and is calculated on supposed savings from reduced pesticide use with the Bt variety in a particular location. All farmers growing Monsanto's Bt cotton sign a contract, called a Technology Use Agreement that is strictly applied. It stipulates that, Farmers cannot save seed for replanting Farmers are prohibited from supplying seed to anyone else Farmers must pay 120 times the technology fee, plus the legal fees of Monsanto, if they violate the contract. The Indonesian experience: A cautionary tale Indonesia was the first country in Southeast Asia to permit commercial GM farming against the warnings of scientists and activists on the environmental and socio-economic impacts. Fortunately, permission was granted only on a year-by-year basis, and the government reviewed the impact of the failed Bt crop. The review was scathing. This Gene Revolution, it said, seemed to be a modern tool for cementing farmers' dependence on seeds and transnational agrochemical corporations appearing in developing countries in different guises. The evidence from Indonesia is that GM crops are nothing more than a profit-motivated deployment of scientific power dedicated to sucking the blood of farmers. Monsanto promised Bt cotton would return 3-4 tonnes of cotton per hectare while requiring less pesticide and fertilizer than Kanesia, the local cotton variety. The seed was given to farmers with pesticide, herbicide, (including Roundup) and fertilizer as part of a credit scheme costing sixteen times more than non- Bt cotton. In fact, the average yield was 1.1 tonnes per hectare and 74% of the area planted to Bt-cotton produced less than one tonne per hectare. About 522 hectares experienced total crop failure. Despite
RE: [Biofuel] GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World
Greetings Concerned Cotton People, There is a simple answer to eliminating pests of all kinds from cotton and any other plant. It is called Vermiculture. Nope: Vermiculture is the production of worms. Vermicomposting is the production of castings, to which you refer. Not just being picky, they're different - yes, vermiculture does produce castings too, but they're essentially a by-product, and yes, vermicomposting does also produce excess worms, but again they're a by-product. To achieve what you're claiming it has to be vermicomposting. It's no news, by the way, nor that organic methods are highly productive and need no pesticides, it's quite well-covered in the archives, and very well-covered at Journey to Forever - we've been doing this for 25 years: http://journeytoforever.org/compost_worm.html Vermicomposting http://journeytoforever.org/compost_wormlink.html Vermicomposting resources See also: City farms Organic gardening Building a square foot garden Plant spacing guides No ground? Use containers When to sow what Seeds Garden pond Gardening resources Composting Making compost Composting resources Composting indoors Vermicomposting Humanure Composting for small farms Small farms Small farm resources Community-supported farms Farming with trees Farming with animals Pasture Pigs for small farms Poultry for small farms Aquaculture for small farms Composting for small farms Controlling weeds and pests Small farms library Granted it is more trouble than just spraying on a chemical Not in the long-run. but it doesn't hurt any living thing and it helps the heck out of plants - they grow up to twice their normal rate and size. Um... well., maybe. Have a look at the photograph of Chinese spinach seedlings on the vermicomposting page: http://journeytoforever.org/compost_worm.html Vermicomposting As to pests, they don't like the chemistry of the castings and therefore they stay away. None are actually killed but that is not the goal - as long as the pests leave your crops alone you are just fine. I realize many will sniff in a critical manner, but no one yet has designed a better system than this one which nature devised millions of years ago. George Sheffield Oliver helped. See: Friend Earthworm: Practical Application of a Lifetime Study of Habits of the Most Important Animal in the World by George Sheffield Oliver, 1941. Dr Oliver was one of the first to harness the earthworm to the needs of the farmer and gardener -- to make highly fertile topsoil for optimum crop growth, and to produce a constant supply of cheap, high-grade, live protein to feed poultry. He devised simple yet elegant and effective systems to bring costs and labour down and productivity up to help struggling farmers to make ends meet. Oliver had an observant and critical eye and understood Nature's round. His ideas on the nature of modern food and health (or the lack of it) are only now being confirmed, half a century later. A delightful book. Full text online. http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library.html#oliver By the way, in the end it is overall a cheaper than pesticide system because of yield increases, no environmental impact therefore no safeguards necessary, no soil erosion, and many more benefits. For the desperate and the believers among you, see the 2 attachments. Sorry, Ed, no attachments: Virus-free As an essential anti-virus measure the list does not accept attachments. All attachments are automatically removed before messages are distributed to the members. It is not possible to receive a virus from the Biofuel list. -- List rules: http://wwia.org/pipermail/biofuel/Week-of-Mon-20040906/05.html This article about a US worm-farmer is worth a read: http://www.newfarm.org/features/0903/worms/index.shtml Ups and downs of worm growing keep Georgia farmer on his toes Worm farming can be lucrative, says Jack Brantley of Bear Creek Worm Farm É but it's like any other live-animal feeding operation. It takes experience, skill and patience. He recommends starting small. Best wishes Keith Good luck, Ed Starr (for Mondays Thursdays-Main Ofc.) | Ed Starr | Star Marketing | 949-496-0050 | FAX 949-388-7828 | [EMAIL PROTECTED]| Dana Point, CA, USA (for Tue., Wed. Fri-Home Ofc.) | Ed Starr | Star Marketing | 619-749-9647 | FAX 619-749-9648 | [EMAIL PROTECTED] -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Keith Addison Sent: Friday, January 28, 2005 9:01 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [Biofuel] GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World The Institute of Science in Society Science Society Sustainability http://www.i-sis.org.uk ISIS Press Release 26/01/05 GM Cotton Fiascos Around the World mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]Rhea Gala A http://www.i-sis.org.uk/full/GMCFATWFull.phpfully referenced version of this article is posted on ISIS membersâ website. http://www.i-sis.org.uk/membership.phpDetails
