I live in Hawaii - specifically on the island of Kauai where we just passed a bill that requires the GMO companies (Syngenta, Pioneer and a few others) to disclose the pesticides they use.
It barely passed.
The issue isn’t one of fear. I do agree there are many who dislike the idea of splicing rat DNA with that of a carrot - but that’s not why many (like me) are against GMOs. The main reasons are:
- Pesticide use
- Patenting of food sources and crops
- Effects on Local Farmers
In Waimea (on the West Side of Kauai) we were picking up elevated levels of Atrazine in the drinking water at the local Waimea schools. The cause for this is, admittedly, unknown however it’s either a) airborne or b) from the water supply itself. This is bad because it was making the kids sick (elder folks too).
We asked the GMO companies to create a buffer zone around schools, parks and public areas - as well as to disclose what exactly they were spraying their crops with. This is a reasonable thing to ask - especially when chemicals appear in water supplies. This isn’t fear - this is reason. And it’s being fought at every level, with the GMO companies threatening to sue individual council members.
Our island overwhelmingly supports this bill - yet the mayor vetoed it.
Many (including the author of this article) have spoken out against ridiculous software patents - yet fail to see the significance of this exact same practice when it comes to food sources. In 2006 the University of Hawaii had the audacity to try and patent taro (http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_504.cfm). Taro is the plant source for poi. Taro itself is considered a sacred food source - imagine if a strain of the patented taro was found in Hanalei Valley (http://www.balihai.com/Blog/hanalei-taro-patches-produce-hawaii-poi-facts-about-taro). GMO companies like to go after farmers after all.
Is this “fear”? I like to think of it as something we shouldn’t have.
Patenting and poisoning the ground without any accountability (disclosures and labeling) - this is what the GMO fight is all about.
Indeed. What I didn’t make clear is that Kauai is a research hub so the crops we have here are “in development”, which means all kinds of chemicals are used to test resistance and resilience. Farms that raise food crops are pretty tightly regulated this way - our crops are a bit of a special case.
You were mentioning something about my “idealogical stance”?
The bill we passed asks for a buffer zone around schools and the disclosure of pesticides used. I don’t believe it calls for “destroying GMO viability”.
You’re confusing two points. The first is simply that people want to know if they’re eating GMO foods (labeling). The second (my point) is that I want to know what’s being sprayed on the ground. Not sure why this is so upsetting to you.
It would be helpful if you could tell me what that is?
I don’t quite see how our island is “attacking” these companies. You seem pretty upset about this stuff, but hey the Garden Island will be here for you to relax and unwind - we’ll protect it for you :).
Because farmers are being sued out of existence due to cross-pollination, seed that’s sold illegally (represented as something else entirely) and the closed nature of the development of these organisms. Our island is a laboratory - the crops here (as far as I know) aren’t actually sold - they’re simply tested and developed. And we’re not allowed to know what chemicals they’re putting into the ground? This is the danger of patents and money behind agriculture.
