USDA Prepares to Green-Light Gnarliest GMO Soy Yet

 

http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/07/usda-prepares-ground-dows-herbicide-sucking-crops

By Tom Philpott

Wed Jul. 18, 2012 3:30 AM PDT

In early July, on the sleepy Friday after Independence Day, the USDA quietly signaled its intention to green-light a new genetically engineered soybean seed from Dow AgroSciences. The product is designed to produce soy plants that withstand 2,4-D, a highly toxic herbicide (and, famously, the less toxic component in the notorious Vietnam War-era defoliant Agent Orange).

New study shows GE crops toxic to wildlife

http://www.i-sis.org.uk/Bt_Toxicity_Confirmed_Flawed_Study_Exposed.php

A new study confirms that the Cry1Ab Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) toxin present in genetically modified (GM) crops kills the larvae of the two-spotted ladybird (Adalia bipunctata L.), a species that GM supporters claim to be unaffected by the toxin.

The study raises questions regarding the integrity of previous work published by GM proponents, whose experimental protocols were re-tested and shown to lack the scientific rigour required to pick up signs of toxicity even in target insects that the pesticide is designed to kill.

Bt toxins are present in many GM crops including cotton and maize. Monsanto’s Mon 810 Bt maize is currently approved for cultivation in Europe, although it has been banned by individual nations including Hungary, France, Austria, Germany, Greece and Luxembourg due to health and environmental concerns. Many previous studies have found effects on health and the environment

sign the Avaaz petition against GE corn in South Africa

For those of you who are not on Avaaz’s elist, please go here:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Ban_Agent_Orange_GM_maize_in_South_Africa/?cYuMaab