GMO: A Detour From Naturale
By Aayush Anand
24 November, 2015
Countercurrents.org
The civilization that we know of is six thousand years old and during this time, man with his quintessential discernment has carved a niche for itself by making all the resources available work on his accord. Most of the advancements derived from persistent experimentation have turned out beneficial for the masses while there are others whose actual rationale are indubitable. One such is the GMO project.
GMOs are living organisms with artificially manipulated genetic material through genetic engineering in a laboratory. It’s a relatively new science which creates combination of plants, animals, bacteria and viral genes which are unstable and do not occur in nature or through traditional crossbreeding methods. There are people and organizations who claim that despite biotech industry promises, none of the GMO traits currently on the market offer increased yield, drought tolerance, enhanced nutrition or any other consumer benefit. In addition to that a growing body of evidence connects GMOs with health problems, environmental damage and violation of farmers and consumer rights.
I don’t intend to take a pro or a counter stand. But amidst all the debate between the biotech lobbyist and their critics the common people, who would have the biggest stake in the repercussions, if any, are left oblivious to the arguments of either side and sometimes even to the knowledge that they are being subjected to an elaborate biochemical experiment. And this is not even the first time. People have mercury in their teeth. They have been infected dozens of time with mercury, aluminum and multiple other excitoxins and neurotoxins. The air has nanoparticle aluminum, barium salts and lithium. The municipal water is poisoned with brain destroying hydroflorosilic acid, lead, aluminum, chlorine and neurotoxins. Feel like a lab rat yet?
The misinformation and opacity is another concern along with the abundance of chemicals in people’s consummation. India’s “Legal Metrology Rules” for packaged commodities came into effect on January 1, 2013, and one of its provision states that every package containing the genetically modified food shall bear at the principal display the letters ‘GM’, with the assumption that people will recognize the letters and understand them to mean ‘genetically modified’. Had the government been innocuous in its intent, it would have drafted a tighter law to regulate GMO and made it mandatory to include in the packaging the implications and allegements involving GMO so that the consumers could make an informed choice. To add to that there is no real logistical framework established at the governmental level to guide how food products will be tested for GMO content.
The Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs) from mustard growing belts of Gujarat, which together represent around 100,00 farmers and business worth Rs 400 crores, have written to Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee(GEAC) stating that there is no special demand for GM food in the market whereas non-GM food is preferred by consumers. But regardless of all, the government is adamant to float GMO in the market. Though it stinks of hidden agenda I would refrain from making any suppositions without proofs lest it be taken as conspiracy theory and dismissed. But the question is worth further scrutiny.
As recently as 2010, India was known for its anti-GMO policies. It all changed with the election of Prime Minister NarendraModi. In the past year, eight Indian states aligned with Modi’sBharatiyaJanata Party have approved field trials of GM crops, between them allowing tests that include transgenic rice, cotton, maize (corn), mustard, brinjal and chickpea. The seemingly momentous decision went mostly uncovered by the large media houses of india, adding further to the opacity in pretext of GMO. To be transparent the biggest fears about GE crops and animals are their potential to provoke allergic reactions and the transfer to humans of antibiotic-resistant properties of GMO.
Mosanto, the American agrochemical company which spearheads the GMO project has appropriated around 900 million dollars over the last decade or so, from farmers in India. Small farmers are being encouraged to replace their subsistence crops with cash crops like coffee and cotton, the price of which fluctuate dramatically. And because many GMOs contain “terminator genes” that prevent farmers from collecting seeds and replanting them in future seasons, growers must purchase the seeds afresh each year. Combine with fluctuating market rates, this induces substantial debt to many.
Six thousand years of evolution has brought us to an era of suppression and abuse by misinformation and globalist-controlled news and entertainment media. The GMO project is one of the many unfortunate policies adopted by the government that cater to the interests of wealthy ruling class and the multinational corporations. The economizing of truth has to stop to make the proximate to power realize they do not wield it.
Aayush Anand is a feature writer. blog at beyond-the-static.com. twitter at twitter.com/theaayushanand.