AUSTRALIA: Soy farmers voice fears over GM crops

23.apr.08
Northern Star
Emma O’Neill

Soybean grower Stuart Larsson was cited as saying he believes the success of the Australian soy bean industry rests on the ban of GMOs during the harvest and production of the bean, adding, “The Australian soy bean market isn’t competitive worldwide in terms of production. The only reason we are surviving is because we are one of the only remaining GMO-free markets. It’s vital we stay that way. The government lifted the ban on using GMOs on canola in February, and if the ban was lifted on soy beans as well it would be devastating.”
The lifting of the GMO ban on canola crops wasn’t good news for soy bean growers, according to local agriculture academic Dave Forrest.
“Soy bean growers are already on the list as one of the next crops to lift the ban, and now that the door is open for bees to travel from canola to soy crops,” Mr Forrest said.
“It will make it hard for growers to prove to overseas markets that their soy beans are GMO-free.

Ref:http://www.northernstar.com.au/storydisplay.cfm?storyid=3770376

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2 Responses

  1. I have seen no convincing evidence that GMO crops have any economic benefits other than for those who control the patents on the genetics. The idea that GMOs can be isolated from non-GMO crops is a patent nonsense and is an example of the hubris that abounds in our society. Those who argue that genetic modification is no different from selective breeding forget that in selective breeding you have to work within the ability of the organism to reproduce and pass on genes it already has – genetic modification introduces genes from one species into another.

  2. And therein lies the brilliance of the technique. Still, second-generation biotech is focused more on in-species gene expression and makes the first go-round, with its relatively low-tech approach of smashing cells together, seem like so much steam power in a modern age.

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