THE DANGERS OF GM CANOLA
What do Canola, Monsanta and Roundup have to do with GMOs?
Well, as I have warned once before, the release of GM Canola in Australia and WA more specifically will come at a cost to us all eventually.
New Swedish research has confirmed that genetically modified crops can become superweeds and persist in the environment for more than a decade. The worst example being GM canola which can transfer herbicide tolerance to related brassicas. These are the sorts of weeds you see on the side of the road or in gardens all over Australia already. Imagine the problems for everyone if we cannot kill them because they are resistant to Roundup!
(Long-term persistence of GM oilseed rape in the seedbank, Biology Letters, April 2008)
THE LEGAL AND SOCIAL CONSEQUENCES OF GM CROPS!
In 1997 Canadian farmer Percy Schmeiser sowed what he hoped was his last canola crop. What in reality was to occur was the beginning of a nightmare of litigation and lost health and lots of money!
What basically happened was that his crop was “infected” by a neighbours GM canola. Now that farmer had paid a fee to Monsanta to use the GM seed and purchase new seed each year. You see the licence did not allow the keeping of seed for the next year since this is infringement of Monsanto’s patent!
In 1998, Schmeiser was sued by the company for $400,000 for using their seeds. The poor farmer had never bought or used the seeds and had in fact developed his own over many years of trial and error. By 2004 the Canadian Supreme Court ruled he had not done wrong and did not need to pay any penalty.
GUILTY UNTIL PROVED INNOCENT?
The most worrying outcome of this case was that the court ruled that if a farmland was contaminated with the GM seed the farmer cannot seed that land! So any accidental seed drop (bird, passing truck or your neighbours tractor) locks up your right to do what you want on your own land.
This decision turned farmers against each other and made it now impossible for organic canola to be grown in Canada. Not to mention the loss of export markets in Europe and Japan.
IS WESTERN AUSTRALIA RISKING MORE BY HAVING GMO’s THAN NOT?
So what happens in WA when the government allows the use of GM crops more widely than just “a trial”.
When the GM contaminates normal crops is the government going to protect the innocent farmer or will they side with the big Pharma Corporations – who will undoubtedly claim compensation or sue?
Will we lose our ability to be the clean and green food producer that the world scrambles to for good quality food?
Will organic food production be impossible because of gene contamination of our principle food items?
Will rogue weeds develop that will go out of control in our unique environments?
Postscript:
As for Schmeiser, his counter-suit was settled out of court and the more important precedent was set that farmers are intitled to compensation when their crops are contaminated by unwanted GM plants.
