Scientists say India should not believe false promises of genetically modified crops

[xchrom]

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/09/25-5



A group of scientists said that ecological farming and a shift towards a holistic paradigm, not genetically modified (GM) crops, are the answer for India's future agricultural needs.


The scientists made their statements in New Delhi at a media briefing organized by Aruna Rodrigues, lead petitioner in a public interest litigation seeking a moratorium on GM testing in India, the Times of India reports.

Prof. Hans Herren, Co-Chair of IAASTD, the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development, who was awarded the World Food Prize in 1995, said, "What we really need is a shift in paradigm, where a holistic approach drives our interventions in agriculture without reductionist solutions hogging the center-stage and taking away precious resources."

Professor Jack Heinemann from the School of Biological Sciences, University of Canterbury, pointed out the failure of GM crops to address food insecurity. "Only two countries in the world, both in South America, grow GM on more than 40% of their agricultural land and both are suffering from an increased food insecurity. Most of their poor neighbors that have not adopted GM have improving food security statistics," he said.

[dipsydoodle]

1. Yes - "Beware of false prophets"

seeking only profits.