Mexico's decision on GM maize postponed until next year

A decision as to a widespread planting of genetically modified (GM) corn or transgenic maize in Mexico will not be made under the outgoing government of President Felipe Calderón. It will now await until sometime next spring.

 

Digital Journal recently reported that Monsanto Co. and DuPont are planning to take over Mexico's corn-growing heartland with GM corn, or maize, with the proposed planting of 2,500,000 hectares (more than 6 million acres), including the controversial strain of corn that has been linked to cancer in rats in a recently published peer-reviewed study.

 

Concern has been voiced that the planting of GMO's would be devastating for the heart of the center of origin and diversity for maize, where scientists have identified thousands of peasant varieties of maize.

 

According to a top Mexican government official speaking on Thursday, the highly controversial approval for planting of GM corn fields on a commercial scale will be delayed until next year.

 

A deputy agriculture secretary, Mariano Ruiz, said that the regulatory approval process will not be finalized under the current government and will, instead, fall to Calderón's successor, President-elect Enrique Peña Nieto of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, who is set to take office on December 1.

 

According to Ruiz, permits are not likely to be approved for four to five months, but he did state that the new government, under Peña Nieto, is like-minded in its support for the introduction of large-scale GMO corn cultivation in Mexico.He told reporters, "I think we are in agreement generally over the importance of having this instrument, and that farmers have the tool of genetically modified organisms."

 

However he did add, "But like they say, the devil is in the details." 

 

While scientists have acknowledged that Mexico is the birthplace of corn, and opponents argue that these genetically modified varieties would contaminate native strains and irrevocably damage the grain's biodiversity, Ruiz said that the government still had to designate so-called "centers of origin" where GM corn cultivation will be banned, as well as set other safety regulations.

 

Mexico currently plants around 7.2 million hectares (17.8 million acres) of corn each year, consisting mainly of white corn for human consumption. According to agriculture ministry data, domestic corn production this year will total almost 22 million tonnes.

 

However, the country relies on imports of yellow corn for animal feed, which includes around 9 million tonnes in 2012. Promoters of GM corn say it would produce yields between 10 and 15% larger than conventional strains. They say this could both boost production, and also curb Mexico's dependence on imports.

 

There are currently five applications for commercial-scale GM corn fields, totally around 2.5 million hectares, including Monsanto, with two applications of 700,000 each in Mexico's western Sinaloa state, the country's largest corn producer.

 

Pioneer Hi-Bred International, which is part of DuPont has three applications outstanding, each of which would cover around 350,000 hectares, in northeastern Tamaulipas state.  One other application is outstanding by Dow Agrosciences de Mexico, part of Dow Chemical, for 40,000 hectares also in Tamaulipas state.

Verónica Villa from ETC’s Mexico office was quoted recently as saying, “If Mexico’s government allows this crime of historic significance to happen, GMOs will soon be in the food of the entire Mexican population, and genetic contamination of Mexican peasant varieties will be inevitable. We are talking about damaging more than 7,000 years of indigenous and peasant work that created maize – one of the world’s three most widely eaten crops.”

 

Silvia Ribeiro, ETC Group’s Latin America Director, was quoted as saying: “It would be a monumental injustice for the creators of maize – who have so benefited humankind – to be obliged to pay royalties to a transnational corporation that exploited their knowledge in the first place.”

 

Another concern is that farmers will no longer be able to save their own seed from each harvest and will always have to buy more seeds for each planting, along with the necessary herbicides, causing more expense. Should harvests not go well, farmers will then struggle to survive.

 

A petition is being run by Avaaz addressed to the President of Mexico, to "Stop GMO Corn from Contaminating Mexico's Heartland."

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/337603#ixzz2DEQMQ7X7

Video: California kids say 'Yes on 37' to label GMOs

 

A bunch of youngsters in California are concerned about the food that they are eating. While they can't personally vote on Prop 37, they are urging others to say yes to the ballot initiative to label GMOs.

You have to be 18-years-old to vote, but not to make a video. A group of kids got together and made the above video, which is doing the rounds on YouTube. 

 

The kids urge Californians to vote yes on Proposition 37, the ballot initiative to label genetically modified food products and products that contain genetically engineered ingredients.

 

 

All they, and other proponents of Proposition 37, are asking, is for a simple label, telling them what is in their food. No extra cost to the consumer, just transparency. 

 

As they say in the video, the opposition to Proposition 37 does not consist of one single human being, just a bunch of the biggest pesticide and junk food companies. For more information, visit www.carighttoknow.org/

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/335667#ixzz2AaPjuhTg

Kids are not Lab Rats: Vote Yes on Prop 37

In a really cute video, kids tell us why it is important to vote Yes on Proposition 37, the initiative requiring genetically modified food to be labeled in California, USA.

Coming up in November this year, Californians will be voting on Proposition 37, which would require that all genetically engineered food be labeled. 

 

The opposition (Big Pesticide and major junk food companies) are pumping millions of dollars into a misleading and often fraudulent advertising campaign to debunk labeling and to confuse voters. 

 

35 million dollars goes a long way to protecting their bottom line. While the Yes on 37 campaign cannot match them in dollars, the grassroots organization can fight back with a big heart and a genuine need to know what we are eating. In case you don't know what genetically engineered or genetically modified (GE or GMO) foods are, the majority of processed foods in the supermarket contain these. The food has been genetically modified with DNA from other plants or animals, and also to produce its own built-in pesticides. 

 

The foods are untested, unlabeled and potentially unsafe for both your health and the environment.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), does no independent safety testing on GMOs and only relies on information supplied by the biotechnology companies, who in turn, are merely thinking of their bottom line. 

 

A recent study in France showed that genetically modified corn caused tumors and organ failure in rats over a lifetime period. And yet, we have no idea of the long-term effects of the same GMOs on humans. 

 

 If you live in California, give yourself the chance to choose what you are eating and feeding to your children by taking the pledge to vote Yes on 37 or, if you live elsewhere, to support the initiative. 

 

 As the kids in the video say, they can't vote, but you are an adult, so please vote "Yes." 

 

 

For more information visit www.carighttoknow.org where they say, "Prop 37 gives us the right to know if our food has been genetically engineered. It helps us make the right food choices for our families by putting a simple label on the groceries we buy and telling us if our food has been genetically engineered. Simple and clear labels. No cost to consumers. No loopholes - that's why a broad and diverse Coalition from the Sierra Club, to farmers, nurses, doctors and the Consumer Federation of America say YES to 37."

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/335221

Everything you need to know about Prop 37 and labeling GMOs

South African consumers win GM labelling victory

The African Centre for Biosafety reports that South African consumers have just won a hard-earned victory, regarding the labelling of genetically modified (GM) foods.

 

GM crops have been grown in South Africa since 1999. However most consumers are largely unaware that their staple food, maize (or corn), has been genetically modified. GM soya and cotton are also grown in South Africa, and a significant amount of foodstuffs on the supermarket shelves now contain GM components or ingredients.

 

Up until now, the food industry in South Africa has taken the view that current GM labelling laws are ambiguous and do not apply to processed foods.On Wednesday, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) published draft amendments to regulations governing the labeling of genetically modified food in South Africa. According to these draft amendments, all imported or locally produced food which contains 5% or more genetically modified components or ingredients, must now be labelled as "contains genetically modified ingredients or components".

 

Director of the African Centre for Biosafety (ACB), Mariam Mayet, congratulated the DTI and also praised the role played by consumers in demanding their right to know. Mayet says "the proposed amendments convey the clear intention of government that the food industry must now step up to the plate and label their products."

 

Mayet did, however, express disappointment that labelling will only apply if there is 5% or more GM content. This threshold is reportedly based purely on commercial considerations and not on any scientific measure. 

 

SAFeAGE is an organisation that has fought for mandatory labelling of GM food to be included in the Consumer Protection Act. Fahri Hassan of the organisation said that he was "delighted that finally, the best interests of the public have been considered and that consumers have won the right to know what they are eating".

 

Currently the draft amendments are open for public comment up to November 9, 2012. Expectations are that the GM industry will continue to lobby for weaker regulations and give excuses as to why their products should not be labelled.

Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/334690