At the recent Direct Seed Conference in Kennewick, Washington, one of the speaker presentations dealt with the anti-GMO, Glyphosate campaign that is gaining public acceptance world wide. Advocacy groups are driven by ideology, --good science be damned. They are quite comfortable in substituting "it's possible" or "it probably is", for, "it does", and hype it "as fact", when it means nothing of the sort. A lot of the public is gullible and Laws are being written and products band or boycotted as a result of this hype.
As near as I can determine, this demonizing of glyphosate and GMO's originates from the Organic Farming Industry.
This is nothing more than a tug-of-war between holding on to the ways of the past, and moving on with new ways of the future. Like everything else we encounter in life, we have to muddle through it.
--- SCIENCE OVER ADVOCACY ---
Below I'm including two websites that support science over advocacy. The first is "Biology Fortified" < Biology Fortified >. The second is the "Genetic Literacy Project" < Science Not Ideology >I've also included two of the 501(c)(3) organizations that fund much, if not most, of the tirade against Monsanto and GMO's. They are the Rodale Institute, and The Sustainable Food Alliance Inc.
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Biology Fortified explains the science behind GMO's and exposes the pseudo-science propaganda that shows up in the media. < Biology Fortified >
Genetic Literacy Project (GLP), advocates “Science, not Ideology”. Information about GLP can be obtained at: < https://geneticliteracyproject.org/glp-board/ >
I have pulled parts of the profiles of the individuals named below from the GLP website. They are names that many of us recognize in the anti-GMO campaign.
I have pulled parts of the profiles of the individuals named below from the GLP website. They are names that many of us recognize in the anti-GMO campaign.
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ABOUT RODALE INSTITUTE
Rodale Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to pioneering organic farming through research and outreach. For over seventy years, the Institute has been researching the best practices of organic agriculture and sharing findings with farmers and scientists throughout the world, advocating for policies that support farmers, and educating consumers about how going organic is the healthiest option for people and the planet. Learn more at www.rodaleInstitute.org.
The Sustainable Food Alliance, Inc. (SFA) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, EIN 33-1123944 registered in the state of Delaware.
The aim of the SFA is to act as a catalyst to encourage collaborative engagement between individuals and organizations working in the field of sustainable agriculture.
Our mission is to accelerate the transition to more sustainable food and farming systems.
The SFA’s programs of work are delivered primarily by working in partnership with other organizations. We fundraise for and make grants to organizations working in the field of sustainable food and agriculture. We work alongside the Sustainable Food Trust, a UK-based charity that works internationally to advance our shared mission. The link to the summary article of: The Hidden Cost of UK Food . I found this an interesting short read. They include a lot of different elements into "the cost". I can't disagree with what they are saying, but, (they don't lay out the details for feeding the world population) I can't get my mind around replacing our high capacity production with "Organic Farming".
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Judy Carman: Activist researcher promotes GMO scare studies in fringe journals?
Updated on November 29, 2017 | [wpv-post-taxonomy type="glp-types
PROFILE DETAILS
Judy Carman (born January 31, 1964) is an academic and anti-GMO activist. Her vanity site—GMO Judy Carman—was established by Henry Rowlands, the cybermaster behind GMO Seralini and the pro-organic website SustainablePulse, which promotes claims that genetically modified foods are unsafe despite the findings of every major independent science organizations that they are as safe or safer than other conventional or organic foods.
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Jeffrey Smith: Former flying yogic instructor now 'most trusted source' for anti-GMO advocacy
Updated on November 29, 2017
PROFILE DETAILS
Jeffrey M. Smith (born 1956) is a self-published American author, independent film producer, professional dance instructor and former politician known for his work in transcendental meditation and yogic flying, Lindy Hop swing dance and activism in opposition to genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Smith ran for the U.S. Congress as a candidate for the Natural Law Party (United_States), has authored several self-published books, DVDs and a movie on the dangers of genetic engineering,[1] serves on the Genetic Engineering Committee of the Sierra Club, and is a frequent conference speaker at advocacy, alternative health, organic and natural products conferences and his work is promoted on such nationally syndicated television programs as The Dr. Oz Show. Smith claims to have a background in communications and marketing,[2] has served as an occasional contributor to his local newspaper[3] and attended school at the Maharishi Institute of Management in Fairfield, Iowa where he resides.
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Gilles-Éric Séralini: Activist professor and face of anti-GMO industry
Updated on November 29, 2017
PROFILE DETAILS
Gilles-Éric Séralini is a French scientist who has been a professor of molecular biology at the University of Caen since 1991. He is known for his controversial research concluding that genetically modified food and the pesticide glyphosate are unsafe for human consumption.
Séralini was born August 23, 1960 in Annaba, Algeria, then known as Bône. He is president and chairman of the board of CRIIGEN (Committee of Independent Research and Information. He has published multiple studies alleging health risks associated with plant biotechnology which have been called flawed and biased by various regulatory and academic groups.
A professor of Molecular Biology at the University of Caen, Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, I.B.F.A., Esplanade de la Paix, 14032 Caen Cedex, France. Séralini studied in Nice and became a Doctor in biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Montpellier in 1987. He left then for North America to carry out fundamental research for four years, at the University of Western Ontario and Laval University Medical Center, doing research on corticosteroid-binding globulin. Qualified to supervise research, he passed, at the age of 30, the French national competitive exam for University Professors.
Séralini chose to focus on the interface of cancer research and endocrinology at the University of Caen, where he was appointed professor in June 1991, a position he has held ever since. He has written about 100 scientific articles and conference papers for international specialist symposiums. He assumes several roles in the Commissions of the University of Caen, where he leads a research team associated to CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research) and INRA."
Funding for much of Séralini's research has come directly from the alternative health and organic industries, and in particular by various organizations tied to the Rodale Institute, that bills itself as "advocating for policies that support farmers, and educating consumers about how going organic is the healthiest option for people and the planet." Anthony Rodale–chairman emeritus of Rodale’s Organic and grandson of the founder, is a vocal supporter of Séralini's work.
The funds are funneled to the French scientist through the Sustainable Food Alliance (SFA), headed by Patrick Holden, former director of the UK Soil Association--Britain's organic industry trade group--which is a "charity campaigning for planet-friendly organic practices" and "healthy, humane and sustainable food, farming and land use”. A study released in December 2016 claiming GM corn is not "substantially equilvent" to non-GMO varieties was financed by SFA.
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Don Huber: Science still looking for Purdue professor's GMO pathogen time bomb
Updated on November 29, 2017
PROFILE DETAILS
Don M. Huber (born 1935) is a former Purdue University professor who goes on publicity tours sponsored by organic[1], alternative health[2] and anti-GMO interest groups[3] claiming glyphosate and herbicide tolerant GM crops are causing health problems in people and animals. He also claims he discovered years ago a novel pathogenic microbe caused by agricultural genetic engineering–a GMO time bomb that is wreaking havoc on humans and animals.
Huber maintains glyphosate and GMO herbicide tolerant crops are linked to human and animal health risks. He says animals fed GM crops are dying in record numbers and that their is a correlation between GM soy and GM corn with inflammatory bowel disease in humans in the United States. He alleges glyphosate is linked to alzheimer's disease, gout, diabetes, Parkinson's, allergies and fertility issues. To support his claims, he cites research by a Maharishi movement expert in yogic flying Jeffrey M. Smith, and the debunked activist researcher Gilles-Eric Séralini.[5]
Huber has collaborated with anti-GMO activist researchers Judy Carman and Jack Heinemann in support of anti-GMO claims sponsored by extreme organic and biodynamic food and farming products company president Howard Vlieger.
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