Just Stop P*ssing Everyone Off

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bobzmyunkle

Senior Member
I have been following this saga for a long time, and Green Peace are on the wrong side of history in this particular case.

You may well be right. I don't know enough about it. I'm wary of corporate answers and single food answers.
This suggests there is an alternative argument.
https://www.independentsciencenews.org/health/why-we-oppose-golden-rice/
 

albion

Guru
Quite an exact headline. Not being from Monsanto there seem mainly positives.

If it is not for profit surely they get control too. Greenpeace oppose GM.
https://www.greenpeace.org/eu-unit/tag/gmos/
'GM plants can also contaminate other crops and lead to 'super weeds'. This technology must be strictly controlled to protect our environment, farmers and independent science.'
 
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Ian H

Legendary Member
Moving to genetically modified crops prevents farmers from saving the seed, so they have to buy new each year. This is an added cost that many can ill-afford. There may be restrictions on what else they can grow, to avoid hybridisation, and it takes away their independence. As Greenpeace points out there are various other ways of achieving the same result.
 

C R

Über Member
Moving to genetically modified crops prevents farmers from saving the seed, so they have to buy new each year. This is an added cost that many can ill-afford. There may be restrictions on what else they can grow, to avoid hybridisation, and it takes away their independence. As Greenpeace points out there are various other ways of achieving the same result.

That's the Monsanto business model. The rice lin this case is not encumbered by any ip issues, farmers can do with it as they wish.
 

Ian H

Legendary Member
That's the Monsanto business model. The rice lin this case is not encumbered by any ip issues, farmers can do with it as they wish.

There are still problems. Will any saved seed be true? If they can use it then there'd have to be rigorous separation of crops to avoid cross-pollination. For small farmers that might mean monoculture, with all the risk that would involve. If they can't save the seed then, as I said, they would presumably have to buy it, even at a non-profit price.
 
 
Moving to genetically modified crops prevents farmers from saving the seed, so they have to buy new each year. This is an added cost that many can ill-afford. There may be restrictions on what else they can grow, to avoid hybridisation, and it takes away their independence. As Greenpeace points out there are various other ways of achieving the same result.
There are but like always it's all about the money and the ''montasanto's'' off this world have the budget to push their working but also more damaging soluttions trough, but if you look at smaller biological farmer you see you really don't need all the stuff the montesanto's are trying to push. If you however want to farm like a factory and push out as much as possible without caring for the environment soil quality and so forth, industrial solutions like montesanto's are your friend.
 

C R

Über Member
You don't.

Yo do, growing up I remember how my mum always was careful on how she laid out the peas and mange tout plots so that they wouldn't cross pollinate. Cross pollination is always potential issue, whether the plants involved are gm or not.

Rice, however, is mostly self pollinating, and the rate of hybridisation of adjacent crops is low compared to something like peas.
 

Ian H

Legendary Member
Yo do, growing up I remember how my mum always was careful on how she laid out the peas and mange tout plots so that they wouldn't cross pollinate. Cross pollination is always potential issue, whether the plants involved are gm or not.

Rice, however, is mostly self pollinating, and the rate of hybridisation of adjacent crops is low compared to something like peas.

Not "all crops".
 

C R

Über Member
Not "all crops".

Well, no, peas will not cross pollinate with wheat, and we don't care if potatoes cross pollinate because we use the root, not the fruit.

The problem I have with the blanket no to gm position that green peace take is that it throws the baby out with the bath water. The problem with gm is commercial exploitation à la Monsanto soy beans. Going for gm itself misses the point.
 
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