- Everyone is allergic to the GM foods, it comes out
as depression, anger, memory loss, confusion, nerve tics, aches and
pains in joints and muscles, brain, breast, pancreatic, bladder,
gallbladder, liver, kidney and colon cancers. The cancer index for
adults and children have risen several thousand times in the last
several years. As in 5000% increase. Think about that for a minute.
The antennas of the microwaves, and EMF's, cell phones, Frankenfoods,
polluted air, water, and land.
-
- In two hundred years we have pushed MotherEarth to
the brink of disaster. And people who can see the evidence of all of
this still backstroke down denial. When people deny the evidence they
can see and taste they are beyond unreachable. They are sleeping away
and will only awaken when the Doctor tells them I have good news and
bad news. The good news is cancer, the bad news is, it is too late.
Sorry.
-
- Sheryl
-
- GM - Summary Of Independent Science Panel
Report
-
- The Institute of Science in Society
- Science Society Sustainability
- www.i-sis.org.uk
-
-
- Independent Science Panel Report
- June 15, 2003
-
- The Case for a GM-Free Sustainable World - A
Summary
-
- Why GM-Free?
-
- 1. GM crops failed to deliver promised
benefits
-
- No increase in yields or significant reduction in
herbicide and pesticide use
- United States lost an estimated $12 billion over GM
crops amid worldwide rejection
- Massive crop failures of up to 100% reported in
India
- High risk future for agbiotech: "Monsanto could be
another disaster waiting to happen for investors"
-
- 2. GM crops posing escalating problems on the
farm
-
- Transgenic lines unstable: "most cases of transgene
inactivation never reach the literature"
- Triple herbicide-tolerant volunteers and weeds
emerged in North America
- Glyphosate-tolerant weeds plague GM cotton and soya
fields, atrazine back in use
- Bt biopesticide traits threatening to create
superweeds and bt-resistant pests
-
- 3. Extensive transgenic contamination
unavoidable
-
- Extensive transgenic contamination found in maize
landraces in remote regions of Mexico
- 32 out of 33 commercial seed stocks found
contaminated in Canada
- Pollen remains airborne for hours, and a 35 mile per
hour wind speed is unexceptional
- There can be no co-existence of GM and non-GM
crops
-
- 4. GM crops not safe
-
- GM crops have not been proven safe: regulation was
fatally flawed from the start
- The principle of 'substantial equivalence', vague
and ill defined, gave companies complete licence in claiming GM
products 'substantially equivalent' to non-GM, and hence 'safe'
-
- 5. GM food raises serious safety concerns
-
- Despite the paucity of credible studies, existing
findings raise serious safety concerns
- 'Growth-factor-like' effects in the stomach and
small intestine of young rats were attributed to the transgenic
process or the transgenic construct, and may hence be general to all
GM food
-
- 6. Dangerous gene products are incorporated into
food crops
-
- Bt proteins, incorporated into 25% of all GM crops
worldwide, are harmful to many non-target insects, and some are potent
immunogens and allergens for humans and other mammals
- Food crops are increasingly used to produce
pharmaceuticals and drugs, including cytokines known to suppress the
immune system, or linked to dementia, neurotoxicity and mood and
cognitive side effects; vaccines and viral sequences such as the
ÔspikeÕ protein gene of the pig coronavirus, in the same family as the
SARS virus linked to the current epidemic; and glycoprotein gene gp120
of the AIDS virus that could interfere with the immune system and
recombine with viruses and bacteria to generate new and unpredictable
pathogens.
-
- 7. Terminator crops spread male sterility
-
- Crops engineered with 'suicide' genes for male
sterility, promoted as a means of preventing the spread of transgenes,
actually spread both male sterility and herbicide tolerance traits via
pollen.
-
- 8. Broad-spectrum herbicides highly toxic to humans
and other species
-
- Glufosinate ammonium and glyphosate, used with
herbicide tolerant GM crops that currently account for 75% of all GM
crops worldwide, are both systemic metabolic poisons
- Glufosinate ammonium is linked to neurological,
respiratory, gastrointestinal and haematological toxicities, and birth
defects in humans and mammals; also toxic to butterflies and a number
of beneficial insects, to larvae of clams and oysters, Daphnia and
some freshwater fish, especially the rainbow trout; it inhibits
beneficial soil bacteria and fungi, especially those that fix
nitrogen.
- Glyphosate is the most frequent cause of complaints
and poisoning in the UK, and disturbances to many body functions have
been reported after exposures at normal use levels; glyphosate
exposure nearly doubled the risk of late spontaneous abortion, and
children born to users of glyphosate had elevated neurobehavioral
defects; glyphosate retards development of the foetal skeleton in
laboratory rats, inhibits the synthesis of steroids, and is genotoxic
in mammals, fish and frogs; field dose exposure of earthworms caused
at least 50 percent mortality and significant intestinal damage among
surviving worms; Roundup (MonsantoÕs formulation of glyphosate) caused
cell division dysfunction that may be linked to human cancers.
-
- 9. Genetic engineering creates super-viruses
-
- The most insidious dangers of genetic engineering
are inherent to the process; it greatly enhances the scope and
probability of horizontal gene transfer and recombination, the main
route to creating viruses and bacteria that cause disease
epidemics.
- Newer techniques, such as DNA shuffling, allow
geneticists to create in a matter of minutes in the laboratory
millions of recombinant viruses that have never existed in billions of
years of evolution
- Disease-causing viruses and bacteria and their
genetic material are the predominant materials and tools of genetic
engineering, as much as for the intentional creation of
bio-weapons.
-
- 10. Transgenic DNA in food taken up by bacteria in
human gut
-
- Transgenic DNA from plants has been taken up by
bacteria both in the soil and in the gut of human volunteers;
antibiotic resistance marker genes can spread from transgenic food to
pathogenic bacteria, making infections very difficult to treat.
-
- 11. Transgenic DNA and cancer
-
- Transgenic DNA known to survive digestion in the gut
and to jump into the genome of mammalian cells, raising the
possibility for triggering cancer
- Feeding GM products such as maize to animals may
carry risks, not just for the animals but also for human beings
consuming the animal products
-
- 12. CaMV 35S promoter increases horizontal gene
transfer
-
- Evidence suggests that transgenic constructs with
the CaMV 35S promoter could be especially unstable and prone to
horizontal gene transfer and recombination, with all the attendant
hazards: gene mutations due to random insertion, cancer, re-activation
of dormant viruses and generation of new viruses.
-
- 13. A history of misrepresentation and suppression
of scientific evidence
-
- There has been a history of misrepresentation and
suppression of scientific evidence, especially on horizontal gene
transfer. Key experiments failed to be performed, or were performed
badly and then misrepresented. Many experiments were not followed up,
including investigations on whether the CaMV 35S promoter is
responsible for the 'growth-factor-like' effects observed in young
rats fed GM potatoes.
-
- GM crops have failed to deliver the promised
benefits and are posing escalating problems on the farm. Transgenic
contamination is now widely acknowledged to be unavoidable, and hence
there can be no co-existence of GM and non-GM agriculture. Most
important of all, GM crops have not been proven safe. On the contrary,
sufficient evidence has emerged to raise serious safety concerns, that
if ignored could result in irreversible damage to health and the
environment. GM crops should therefore be firmly rejected now.
-
- Why Sustainable Agriculture?
-
- 1. Higher productivity and yields especially in the
Third World
-
- 8.98 million farmers adopted sustainable agriculture
practices on 28.92 million hectares in Asia, Latin America and Africa;
reliable data from 89 projects show higher productivity and yields:
50-100% increase in yield for rainfed crops, and 5-10% for irrigated
crops; top successes include Burkina Faso, which turned a cereal
deficit of 644 kg per year to an annual surplus of 153 kg, Ethiopia,
where 12 500 households enjoyed 60% increase in crop yields, and
Honduras and Guatemala, where 45 000 families increased yields from
400-600 kg/ha to 2,000-2,500 kg/ha
- Long-term studies in industrialised countries show
yields for organic comparable to conventional agriculture, and often
higher
-
- 2. Better soils
-
- Sustainable agricultural practices reduce soil
erosion, improve soil physical structure and water-holding capacity,
which are crucial in averting crop failures during periods of
drought
- Soil fertility maintained or increased by various
sustainable agriculture practices
- Biological activity higher in organic soils: more
earthworms, arthropods, mycorrhizal and other fungi, and
micro-organisms, all beneficial for nutrient recycling and suppression
of disease
-
- 3. Cleaner environment
-
- Little or no polluting chemical inputs with
sustainable agriculture
- Less nitrate and phosphorus leached to groundwater
from organic soils
- Better water infiltration rates in organic systems,
therefore less prone to erosion and less likely to contribute to water
pollution from surface runoff
-
- 4. Reduced pesticides and no increase in
pests
-
- Integrated pest management cut the number of
pesticide sprays in Vietnam from 3.4 to one per season, in Sri Lanka
from 2.9 to 0.5 per season, and in Indonesia from 2.9 to 1.1 per
season
-
- No increase in crop losses due to pest damage
resulted from withdrawal of synthetic insecticides in Californian
tomato production
-
- Pest control achievable without pesticides,
reversing crop losses, as for example, by using 'trap crops' to
attract stem borer, a major pest in East Africa
- Supporting biodiversity and using diversity
-
- Sustainable agriculture promotes agricultural
biodiversity, which is crucial for food security; organic farming can
support much greater biodiversity, benefiting species that have
significantly declined
- Integrated farming systems in Cuba are 1.45 to 2.82
times more productive than monocultures
- Thousands of Chinese rice farmers doubled yields and
nearly eliminated the most devastating disease simply by mixed
planting of two varieties
- Soil biodiversity enhanced by organic practices,
bringing beneficial effects such as recovery and rehabilitation of
degraded soils, improved soil structure and water infiltration.
- Environmentally and economically sustainable
-
- Research on apple production systems ranked the
organic system first in environmental and economic sustainability, the
integrated system second and the conventional system last; organic
apples were most profitable due to price premiums, quicker investment
return, and fast recovery of costs
- A Europe-wide study showed that organic farming
performs better than conventional farming in the majority of
environmental indicators
- A review by the United Nations Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) concluded that well-managed organic agriculture
leads to more favourable conditions at all environmental levels
- Ameliorating climate change by reducing direct &
indirect energy use
-
- Organic agriculture uses energy much more
efficiently and greatly reduces CO2 emissions compared with
conventional agriculture, both with respect to direct energy
consumption in fuel and oil and indirect consumption in synthetic
fertilizers and pesticides
- Sustainable agriculture restores soil organic matter
content, increasing carbon sequestration below ground, thereby
recovering an important carbon sink
- Organic agriculture is likely to emit less nitrous
dioxide (N2O), another important greenhouse gas and also a cause of
stratospheric ozone depletion
- Efficient, profitable production
-
- Any yield reduction in organic agriculture more than
offset by ecological and efficiency gains
- Smaller farms produce far more per unit area than
larger farms characteristic of conventional farming
- Production costs for organic farming are often lower
than conventional farming, bringing equivalent or higher net returns
even without organic price premiums; when price premiums are factored
in, organic systems are almost always more profitable
- Improved food security and benefits to local
communities
-
- A review of sustainable agriculture projects showed
that average food production per household increased by 1.71 tonnes
per year (up 73%) for 4.42 million farmers on 3.58 million hectares,
bringing food security and health benefits to local communities
- Increasing productivity increases food supplies and
raises incomes, thereby reducing poverty, increasing access to food,
reducing malnutrition and improving health and livelihoods
- Sustainable agricultural approaches draw extensively
on traditional and indigenous knowledge, and place emphasis on the
farmersÕ experience and innovation, thereby improving their status and
autonomy, enhancing social and cultural relations within local
communities
- For every £1 spent at an organic box scheme from
Cusgarne Organics (UK), £2.59 is generated for the local economy; but
for every £1 spent at a supermarket, only £1.40 is generated for the
local economy
- Better food quality for health
-
- Organic food is safer, as organic farming prohibits
pesticide use, so harmful chemical residues are rarely found
- Organic production bans the use of artificial food
additives, such as hydrogenated fats, phosphoric acid, aspartame and
monosodium glutamate, which have been linked to health problems as
diverse as heart disease, osteoporosis, migraines and
hyperactivity
- Studies have shown that on average, organic food has
higher vitamin C, higher mineral levels and higher plant phenolics -
plant compounds that can fight cancer and heart disease, and combat
age-related neurological dysfunctions - and significantly less
nitrates, a toxic compound.
- Sustainable agricultural practices have proven
beneficial in all aspects relevant to health and the environment. In
addition, they bring food security and social and cultural well being
to local communities everywhere. There is an urgent need for a
comprehensive global shift to all forms of sustainable
agriculture.
-
-
- The Independent Science Panel on GM Final
Report
-
- Dozens of prominent scientists from seven countries,
spanning the disciplines of agroecology, agronomy, biomathematics,
botany, chemical medicine, ecology, histopathology, microbial ecology,
molecular genetics, nutritional biochemistry, physiology, toxicology
and virology, joined forces to launch themselves as an Independent
Science Panel on GM at a public conference, attended by UK environment
minister Michael Meacher and 200 other participants, in London on 10
May 2003.
-
- The conference coincided with the publication of a
draft report, The Case for a GM-free Sustainable World, calling for a
ban on GM crops to make way for all forms of sustainable agriculture.
This authoritative report, billed as "the strongest, most complete
dossier of evidence" ever compiled on the problems and hazards of GM
crops as well as the manifold benefits of sustainable agriculture, is
being finalised for release 15 June 2003.
-
- Ahead of the release of the 120-page final report,
the Independent Science Panel is pleased to provide a four-page
summary as its contribution to the National GM Debate in the
UK.
-
- It is a challenge to the proponents of GM to answer
the case presented, rather than having to argue against the case for
GM crops, which has yet to be made.
-
- Please circulate this document widely.
-
- Members of the Independent Science Panel on
GM
-
- Prof. Miguel Altieri
- Professor of Agroecology, University of California,
Berkeley, USA
-
- Dr. Michael Antoniou
- Senior Lecturer in Molecular Genetics, GKT School of
Medicine, King's College, London.
-
- Dr. Susan Bardocz
- Biochemist, formerly Rowett Research Institute,
Scotland
-
- Prof. David Bellamy OBE
- Internationally renowned botanist, environmentalist,
broadcaster, author and campaigner; recipient of number awards;
President & Vice President of many conservation and environmental
organisations.
-
- Dr. Elizabeth Bravo V.
- Biologist, researcher and campaigner on biodiversity
and GMO issues; co-founder of Acci"n Ecol"gica; part-time lecturer at
Universidad Politcnica Salesiana, Ecuador.
-
- Prof. Joe Cummins
- Professor Emeritus of Genetics, University of
Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada.
-
- Dr. Stanley Ewen
- Consultant Histopathologist at Grampian University
Hospitals Trust; formerly Senior Lecturer in Pathology, University of
Aberdeen; lead histopathologist for the Grampian arm of the Scottish
Colorectal Cancer Screening Pilot Project.
-
- Edward Goldsmith
- Recipient of the Right Livelihood and numerous
awards, environmentalist, scholar, author and Founding Editor of The
Ecologist.
-
- Dr. Brian Goodwin
- Scholar in Residence, Schumacher College,
England.
-
- Dr. Mae-Wan Ho
- Co-founder and Director of the Institute of Science
in Society; Editor of Science in Society; Science Advisor to the Third
World Network and on the Roster of Experts for the Cartagena Protocol
on Biosafety; Visiting Reader, Open University, UK and Visiting
Professor of Organic Physics, Catania University, Sicily,
Italy.
-
- Prof. Malcolm Hooper
- Emeritus Professor at the University of Sunderland;
previously, Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, Faculty of
Pharmaceutical Sciences, Sunderland Polytechnic; Chief Scientific
Advisor to the Gulf War Veterans.
-
- Dr. Vyvyan Howard
- Medically qualified toxico-pathologist,
Developmental Toxico-Pathology Group, Department of Human Anatomy and
Cell Biology, The University of Liverpool; Member of the UK
Government's Advisory Committee on Pesticides.
-
- Dr. Brian John
- Geomorphologist and environmental scientist; Founder
and long-time Chairman of the West Wales Eco Centre; one of the
coordinating group of GM Free Cymru
-
- Prof. Marijan Josÿt
- Professor of Plant Breeding and Seed Production,
Agricultural College Krizÿevci, Croatia.
-
- Lim Li Ching
- Researcher, Institute of Science in Society and
Third World Network; deputy-editor of Science in Society.
-
- Dr. Eva Novotny
- Astronomer and campaigner on GM issues for
Scientists for Global Responsibility, SGR
-
- Prof. Bob Orskov OBE
- Head of the International Feed Resource Unit in
Macaulay Institute, Aberdeen, Scotland; Fellow of the Royal Society of
Edinburgh, FRSE; Fellow of the Polish Academy of Science.
-
- Dr. Michel Pimbert
- Agricultural ecologist and Principal Associate,
International Institute for Environment and Development.
-
- Dr. Arpad Pusztai
- Private consultant; formerly Senior Research Fellow
at the Rowett Research Institute, Aberdeen, Scotland.
-
- David Quist
- Microbial ecologist, Ecosystem Science Division,
Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of
California, Berkeley, USA.
-
- Dr. Peter Rosset
- Agricultural ecologist and rural development
specialist; Co-director of the Institute for Food and Development
Policy (Food First), Oakland, California, USA.
-
- Prof. Peter Saunders
- Professor of Applied Mathematics at King's College,
London.
-
- Dr. Veljko Veljkovic
- AIDS virologist, Center for Multidisciplinary
Research and Engineering, Institute of Nuclear Sciences, VINCA,
Belgrade, Yugoslavia.
-
- Roberto Verzola
- Secretary-General, Philippine Greens, Member of the
Board of Trustees, PABINHI (a sustainable agriculture network),
Coordinator, SRI-Pilipinas (network of advocates for the System of
Rice Intensification).
-
- Dr. Gregor Wolbring
- Biochemist, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada;
Adjunct Assistant Professor for bioethical issues, University of
Calgary; Adjunct Assistant Professor, University of Alberta; Founder
and Executive Director, International Center for Bioethics, Culture
and Disability; Founder and Coordinator, International Network on
Bioethics and Disability
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