by Sean Poulter
Intensive farming of genetically modified crops is creating dangerous,
spray-resistant superweeds, a new study has claimed. To date crops such as soya
have been genetically modified to withstand spraying with powerful chemicals,
such as Monsanto’s Roundup.
However, the fall-out of this GM system is that weeds in the
fields have developed a resistance to the chemical. The biggest concern is
pigweed, which is now rife across the southern states of America.
It grows at a rate of more than one inch a day and
reaches a height of three metres. The problem is so severe
that farmers have had to resort to the expense of hiring labourers to tour
fields with scythes to clear them.
The so-called perfect super-weed is extremely hardy,
produces 10,000 seeds at a time and will smother commercial crops in the same
field.
Other crops such as maize and cotton have also been altered
to make them
resistant to certain pests. However, recent research
suggests some of the toxins included in GM food plants have reached the
bloodstreams of pregnant women and their unborn babies. The harms this may
cause are not yet known.
GM crops were first sold in the US
about 15 years ago and are now grown in 29 countries on about 3.7billion acres
around the world. Billions of dollars have been spent on the technology.
Commercial crops, however, have not yet delivered the benefits touted by their
makers, such as improved nutrients or drought resistance.
The authors of the Global Citizens? Report on the State of GMOs
said: ‘’The genetic engineering miracle is quite clearly faltering in farmers?’’
It said the biggest issue is the greatly increased use of
synthetic chemicals as part of the farming regime. The study reported that, in China,
where insect-resistant Bt cotton is widely planted, populations of pests have
increased 12-fold since 1997.
A 2008 study in the International Journal of Biotechnology
found that any benefits of planting Bt cotton have been eroded by the
increasing use of pesticides needed to combat them.
It is claimed that pesticide use in India
has increased 13-fold since Bt cotton was introduced. And soya growers in Argentina
and Brazil have
been found to use twice as much herbicide on their GM as they do on
conventional crops.
The report highlights the fact that GM technology has
allowed three biotech firms to gain a stranglehold over large elements of farm
production.
Monsanto, Dupont and Syngenta, the world’s three largest GM
companies,
now control nearly 70 per cent of global seed sales. This
allows them to charge high prices both for seeds and the chemicals used with
them. The study accuses Monsanto of gaining control of over 95 per cent of the Indian
cotton seed market and pushing up prices.
High levels of indebtedness among farmers is thought to be
behind many of the 250,000 deaths by suicide of Indian farmers over the past 15
years.
Vandana Shiva, director of the Indian organisation Navdanya International,
which co-ordinated the report, said: ‘‘The GM model of farming undermines
farmers trying to farm ecologically. Choice is being undermined as food systems
are increasingly controlled by giant corporations and as chemical and genetic
pollution spread. Co-existence between GM and conventional crops is not
possible because genetic pollution and contamination of conventional crops is
impossible to control.
‘‘Choice is being undermined as food systems are
increasingly controlled by giant corporations and as chemical and genetic
pollution spread. GM companies have put a noose round the neck of farmers. They
are destroying alternatives in the pursuit of profit.’’
Dr Mark Buckingham, deputy chairman of the GM industry’s
Agriculture and Biotechnology Council insisted the technology has huge
potential benefits.
He said: ‘‘From India to South
Africa, millions of farmers already value the
positive impact GM technology can have on their operations. The world’s
population is set to reach nine billion by 2050. Significant increases in crop
yields are required or policy makers will struggle to address the most vital
need of hunger and nutrition,
particularly in developing countries.
‘‘From additional vitamins in key food crops such as rice to
disease-resistant crops, GM technology is providing additional tools for farmers
to tackle some of the challenges they face. Drought tolerance technology is
also being developed, which will allow crops to withstand periods of low soil
moisture.’’
