| Bangladeshi scientist dismisses GM foods as no food at all |
| Genetically Modified (GM) foods or crops should not be classified as food at all, as they are liable to cause various health problems affecting the liver and kidney, and hence unfit for human consumption. Dr Mohammed Ataur Rahman, a veteran Bangladeshi agriculturist, made this assertion to newsmen Saturday in his office at the International University of Business Agriculture and Technology (IUBAT) in Dhaka, where he is Director of the Centre for Global Environmental Culture (CGEC), as well as the Program on Education for Sustainability (PES). Dr Rahman said that the main problem with GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) is that it takes hundreds and thousands years of adaptation in an environment for the development of a genetic character. The pneumatic bones that help birds fly and the air bladders, fins and gills that allow fish to live underwater are characters developed over many years of adaptation to their specific environment. "There are many examples of GMOs which are not suitable for natural adaptation," said Dr Rahman, adding that when something is modified (GMO) it can not be sustainable. Without proper adaptation or acclimatization, something may succeed for the time being, but in the long run, it will perish. "If we consider chickens, although the growth is rapid, it is abnormal, they cannot move, and are sexually disabled. Therefore, they become geneically and environmentally dependent." Dr Rahman described the case of the Liger (Lion+Tiger), a giant animal developed by scientists that is a hybrid between a lion and a tiger. But although it is 3 times the size of a lion or tiger, it cannot jump like either. He said, " we further learned that GMO crops are unsuitable for developing countries in particular, as their development requires massive investment in research. Consequently it drains resources from much needed research in the development of low cost alternatives." He said poor countries do not have the capacity to carry out the impact assessment, testing and monitoring that growing GMO crops will entail, and because of these high costs, GMO crops will also be more expensive, putting tremendous pressure on poor farmers having to buy new seeds every year. "Their production system depends on saving their own seeds - with occasional exchange or renewal, - not on yearly purchase of expensive patented seeds," said Dr Rahman, adding that the 'solutions' offered by GMO crops are largely irrelevant against the barriers to increased productivity that poor farmers face. Referring to a report published in the International Journal of Microbiology, he said it has been verified once again that Monsanto's genetically modified (GM) crops are causing severe health problems to consumers. He mentioned that a legal challenge issued against Monsanto had forced the multinational agricultural giant to release raw data revealing that animals fed its patented GM corn suffered liver and kidney damage within just three months. "Genetically manipulated food crops are not fit for human consumption and should not be classified as food. No legitimate study has ever proven them to be safe or nutritious." About the GM seeds, he said that in the 25 years from 1975 to 2000, non-GM soybean seed prices rose a modest 63 percent. SGM soybeans came to dominate the market, the price rose by a massive 230 percent. Maize (corn) growers planting the new GM variety "SmartStax", will pay more than twice as much as farmers planting conventional non-GM seeds, he said. He also added that according to this, the price of growing GM crops is almost four times what conventional farmers paid just ten years earlier. From 1975 to 1996, the price of cotton seed only doubled, but in the GM cotton era, it has risen from $73 to $589. Dr Rahman said the huge increases in GM seed prices only make economic sense if farmers use the savings by reducing pesticide use, but recent research by The Organic Center found that GM crops are actually pushing pesticide use up at a rapidly accelerating rate. |
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