Is Croplife Canada trying to keep RoundUp under the carpet?

Dr. Thierry Vrain and self had a few presentations, talks and question and answers in Manitoba last month, including one in the town of Steinbach. The talk from Dr. Vrain was about Glyphosate and how dangerous it can be for our soil, water, food and in our body.

I spoke about Canada not having a single lab in Canada were we can test our body fluids and food for presence of Glyphosate, as well as how citizen’s grassroots actions, and political engagement at the Municipal level, can push back at this relentless encroachment of corporations into our rights to good health, environment and food.

Meanwhile, the president of Croplife Canada, wrote a letter to the editor of the Southeastern Manitoba newspaper – The Carilloon, which was posted by the paper. The letter basically criticizes Dr. Vrain, but misses his presentation completely.

The content of his letter is as attached.

I found this to be a misrepresentation of facts, considering the fact that Dr. Thierry Vrain focusses on Glyphosate, the weed killing chemical in Monsanto’s RoundUp herbicide, rather than Gene transfer technology in GMO. Mr. Menzies appears to be either unaware of Dr. Vrain’s presentation or may be willfully attempting to sidetrack the main issue of Dr. Vrain’s talks – which is damages to health and environment brought on by Glyphosate, the molecule in RoundUp herbicide suspected to be robbing the mineral nutrients from soil and food as well as killing our micro-biome, the colony of our gut bacteria that are so vital to our well being.

Since Mr. Menzies appears to be so generous in offering his views about it, albeit sidestepping the herbicide, I thought it might be proper to bring the focus back where it was supposed to be – on Glyphosate the weed killer in our food.

Dr. Thierry Vrain

Dr. Vrain has sent a letter to the publisher. I shall copy that here for the people around the world, as Dr. Vrain’s response does throw more light on the issue. Here is what he said :

Dear Sir,

Mr Ted Menzies, President of Crop Life Canada, has not been made aware of the Food Safety and Sustainable Agriculture Forum that took place last month in Beijing.    Over 300 scientists from China, the USA, the UK, Russia, France, Denmark, Germany, Australia, Argentina, Brazil and Peru, met to review and discuss scientific studies of engineered crops and food.  These were not anti GMO activists and conspiracy theorists with an agenda, they were biologists and biotechnologists, and medical doctors and veterinarians,  and there were also farmers, and social and food safety activists,  and representatives of NGOs.   The broad consensus was that the RoundUp Ready technology that was invented to boost the sales of the herbicide RoundUp is not sustainable because of the chronic toxicity of the herbicide.  The technology has been very successful and revolutionized agriculture since 1996, particularly in North America and a few countries of South America, but it is deeply flawed.  This chemical is now spread (and sprayed) all over the food supply in North America and a few other countries, it has become as common as a food additive.  It is also in the air, the rain, the water and of course it bio-accumulates in our body organs.  There is a large body of science showing severe chronic toxicity in animals and pointing the finger at many of the degenerative and inflammatory diseases that we have seen become epidemic since RoundUp has been sprayed on RoundUp Ready crops.  Many countries including political allies of the USA (64 at the last count) have now legislated some form of regulation of engineered crops and foods, or banned them altogether.

The fact that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Health Canada personnel seem to have caved in to political pressure or lobbying to keep ignoring the latest science is not reassuring at all.   Studies from the US Department of Agriculture show that engineered grains are depleted of metal micronutrients.  Just like they would if they contained residues of a powerful and broad spectrum chelating agent that binds the missing minerals.   Studies from many countries show that glyphosate is also antibiotic (at one part per million, as cited on the 2010 US patent).  Does this mean that people are fed low level antibiotics like industrial chickens and cattle?  Business as usual is not acceptable anymore, this was the strong message from the Forum that took place in Beijing last month. 

Cui bono ?  Mr Ted Menzies finds it disconcerting that I am not getting paid and still consider it my civic duty to protect the health and safety of Canadians and raise the alarm.  Who is this technology good for if it depletes the food of essential mineral nutrients and threatens our health?  

 Dr. Thierry Vrain


And then here is what I wrote to the editor of the same paper, today, August 5th 2015:

Dated: August 5, 2014

Dear sir,

As a concerned citizen, I write to you drawing attention to apparent misinformation posted by Mr. Ted Menzies, President of Croplife, in his letter as published in your paper recently.

Dr. Thierry Vrain speaks primarily about Glyphosate, the active ingredient contained in Monsanto’s RoundUp herbicide, and not GMO or gene transfer technology. Mr. Menzies sidesteps the main presentation about the effects of RoundUp herbicide in our food and environment, and attempts to falsely drag Dr. Vrain into a debate on if GMO is good or bad. Is that not falsification of facts?

I would encourage Mr. Menzies to provide peer reviewed science papers that actually prove that presence pesticides in general, or Glyphosate in particular in our food, is good for our health.

I would further like Mr. Menzies to either provide proof that Glyphosate is not an antibiotic although it is patented by Monsanto to be such, or that glyphosate does not damage the micro-biome in our gut in spite of being an anti-biotic.

I would be delighted if Mr. Menzies can further provide data where Canadian citizens can have their blood, urine, and food tested for presence of Glyphosate, to check if levels of this poison has crossed minimum safety limits imposed by USA, by Europe, and other countries. I would also encourage Mr. Menzies to furnish data on what safety limits the Canadian Government might have set on presence of Glyphosate in our food, and if Croplife, or Health Canada or anybody has conducted thorough testing of Canadian food for presence of Glyphosate and if so, where those results are available.

Lastly, I would recommend that Mr. Menzies to actually attend one of Dr. Vrains talks and tries to absorb the content of his presentation, and then write his views on it.

Tony Mitra
(address, phone # & email)


Eric Rempel with Tony Mitra

I was happy to note that Dr. Vrain’s letter was published by the paper, along with another letter from Mr. Eric Rempel, who I had the pleasure of meeting in Manitoba, and who is perhaps planning to stand for election in the local Municipal Council, and do in his neighbourhood what Harold Steves did for Richmond. Below is the copy of his letter to the editor.


I wrote a follow up note to the editor, not necessarily wanting them to publish my comments, but rather, advising them of this blog and its readership, and inviting the editor or other staff to consider posting their own view on this blog, about mainstream media, social media, citizen journalism and alternative media in this new age of internet that has essentially placed the printed newspapers in an almost existential crisis. Add to it the fact that many of the large news-media conglomerates are, by definition, under control of a shrinking body of media corporations that exert a disproportionate amount of influence on what is published and what is not. In the process, free press as we understood it two generations ago are fast becoming a thing of the past.

So here is what I wrote to the editor.

To: The Editor, Mr. Grant Burr
The Carillon,

377 Main Street
Steinbach, Manitoba R5G 1A5
Phone: 204-326-3421 

Dear Mr. Burr,

cc: Dr. Thierry Vrain, Eric Rempel

Subject: Glyphosate, GMO, and the letter to editor by Mr. Ted Menzies, president of Crop Life, Canada.

This is a follow up of my previous email to you dated 5th of August, 2014 on the subject.

I am a citizen journalist, writer, blogger (www.tonu.org), podcaster, videographer and food security activist, and have covered this issue on my blog at http://www.tonu.org/2014/08/05/invisible-glyphosate/. I accompanied Dr. Thierry Vrain on the cross Canada GMO talk tour, speaking after Dr. Vrain, on citizen action issue on Glyphosate Testing, and on grassroots level political activism to counter an unholy alliance between foreign biotech corporations and our political system in Canada.

The blog itself is reasonably popular on a global scale, getting between 1,500 to 2,000 hits a day, mainly from North America, but also from clusters in Western Europe, Asia and elsewhere, and is being picked up even in remote and unlikely locations such as Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Pago Pago island, Turkey, Peru, Hawaii and Guyana . The most recent statistics (past 48 hours) from the server in a visual map is included below for your record.

I was happy to note that you have included at least two of the letters sent to you presenting an opposing view to Mr. Ten Menzies’ note, since Mr. Menzies clearly has a conflict of interest, since he is the president of Crop Life, and since Crop Life benefits from sale of both GM crop seed as well as RoundUp herbicide.

From Dr. Vrain’s point of view, largely supported by an increasing number of citizens, scientists, organic farmers, naturopaths and food security activists, it is the pesticide in general and Glyphosate in particular, that is the 900 pound gorilla at our dinner table and more clearly identifiable as the toxic element in our environment and food.

It is perhaps for this reason, that the industry would prefer to sidestep any debate on Glyphosate (the poison in RoundUp herbicide, the most used poison in the world today) in our food and in our body, and try to shackle the debate on the narrow topic of GMO and gene transfer.

I send this note to you for your information, not necessarily requesting you to post this comment in your paper, but rather, to encourage you or your staff to read up on the blog, and perhaps offer your own comments, which I shall be happy to append at the bottom of the blog, should I receive any.

I do not have Mr. Ted Menzies’ email, but in case you do, you are welcome to pass him this note, in case he should wish to offer any counter argument.

This letter, like most things we citizen journalists often write, will be for public consumption, and therefore may be included at the bottom of the same blog, and also freely circulated through internet, etc.

I am copying this note to Dr. Thierry Vrain and Mr. Eric Rempel, whose letter you were gracious enough to print.

This is for your information. Congratulating you for maintaining a balanced view on the topic, and airing both sides of the argument.

Wishing you and your paper a prosperous future.

Tony Mitra
(Contacts)

PS – I have a habit of not proof reading my letters, so please excuse any typo.


I would also invite the editor of the newspaper, The Carillon, to offer his comments if he so wishes, on this blog. I do not have the contact details of Mr. Ted Menzies, president of Crop Life Canada. In case any of the readers has his contacts, you are welcome to invite Mr. Menzies for his comments as well.

In case anyone is interested to write a letter to the newspaper, The Carillon, which presumably covers South-eastern Manitoba, their contacts as displayed on their web site is:
Editor : Mr. Grant Burr
The Carillon, 377 Main Street, Steinbach, Manitoba R5G 1A5Phone: 204-326-3421Fax: 204-326-4860

To better present what Dr. Thierry Vrain talks about, we should shortly have a copy of his presentation video on the internet for the general public to see.

Gene Revolution – by Thierry Vrain

Retired genetic engineer Dr. Thierry Vrain deconstructs the biotech myth that GMO plants :

  • reduce pesticide use
  • have no effect on environment
  • have improved yield
  • are safe to eat

One of a shrinking pool of scientists not yet muzzled by the Governments or the biotech scientific community, he shows how GMO technology is faulty to start with, and were not really designed to provide any benefit to mankind, and were basically produced to increase the sale of dangerous chemicals.

Drs Vrain and Chopra with local support group in Squamish, BC

Dr. Vrain and Health Canada scientist and scientist Dr. Shiv Chopra are on a cross country talking tour in Canada starting in November 2013 to alert the people about how the biotech industry is engaged in a campaign of misinformation, and their efforts are often helped by a corrupt political system in North America, where national regulatory systems fail to protect the people and allow what amounts to untested and potentially unhealthy foods to be marketed.

In this video, Dr. Vrain presents his case – Gene Revolution, a tale of two molecules, in the beautiful hill town of Squamish on November 20 at Sea to Sky Hotel. The event was organized by residents and health food promoters who wish to see Squamish declare itself GMO free.

[youtube MzosCobwqNk]

And here is Shiv Chopra – presenting his case about the Corruption in Health Canada and what people should be doing to snatch democracy back from the clutches of corporatocracy.

More from Dr. Thierry Vrain on GMO

Our talk with noted Canadian soil biologist and retired genetic engineer, Dr. Thierry Vrain was partially covered in an earlier blog, as linked below, which included 4 video clips and one podcast. The first three video trio were about their loverly organic farm. The last one, part 4, was about GMO and the health risk it might carry.

In this video he further elaborates on the bad science behind the GMO technology on one side, and the absence of third party independent testing of the GMO products to assess health risks on the other.

Dr. Thierry Vrain

Dr. Thierry Vrain

Just like part 4, this video too has been converted into an audio podcast as well, so that folks wanting to store the audio podcast in their iPhone or iPod can do so by subscribing to it on iTunes. If you wish to locate the podcast, open iTunes and type “Tonu” in the top right search field and then check the podcast section of the search result. For those that wish to be notified when an additional blog appears, consider clicking the follow (RSS) button at the top right of this blog.

Thierry Vrain – Part 5: Dr. Vrain exposes the dichotomy with regard to GMO feed, where it is substantially equivalent so it does not need to be subjected to safety test on one side, and same time it is totally different from non-GMO food so that it can be granted a patent, on the other side.

[youtube aLFKu3VICgE]

Dr. Thierry Vrain on faulty science behind GMO technology

Presenting an audio podcast and a series of video clips about Dr. Thierry Vrain, organic farmer and retired genetic engineer. He explains how the GMO technology is based on a faulty assumption that has since been proven wrong by more recent study of genome ecosystem of living organisms.

Tony, Thierry & Chanchal

Tony, Thierry & Chanchal

Thierry lives in lovely Comox Valley on the east coast of Vancovuer Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia.

In these video clips, myself, Anu, and Peggy visit the Innisfree farm, or Thierry Vrain and Chanchal Cabrera. Chanchal was busy teaching a class in her farm.

Dr. Vrain with Peggy and Tony in his farm

Dr. Vrain with Peggy and Tony in his farm

Thierry took us around Chanchal’s Teaching garden, and later around his organic farm and discussed how and why of organic farming.

The talks covered chemical free organic farming, sensible gardening practices, as well as a lot of science and experience. Peggy added value to the tour by adding her knowledge and experience into the discussion, including pointers to how things are in Assam, India and how things need to improve, so that pesticides can be taken out of the equation and healthy soil can be preserved and nourished without the need for factory produced toxic chemicals or fertilizers.

Thierry has been many things in his professional life. But for us, his most notable knowledge comes from plant pathology, molecular biology and his experience as a genetic engineer, along with his knowledge that the GMO science is based on old and wrong perceptions of the nature and function of genes. This knowledge is not discussed in this opening section of the video. You need to stay tuned and watch the rest as they are edited and put up.

Thierry Vrain – Part 1 : Thierry  talks to us on medicinal gardens, plants and food.  If chosen well, how our food and lifestyle can cure some decease, even repress or slowdown Cancer. Cancer, which might be considered a decease of old age, is coming up more frequently among the young, and is related to stress, though it has a genetic base. The stress can be from harmful chemicals, physical stress, emotional trauma, could be related to how one lives his/her life, etc.  Then Thierry goes on to describe the garden and its mulch, and how he makes compost out of rotting hay, seaweed, dead leaves etc. And then he shows us how to use natural ingredients to conserve soil health, and explains his own training and work background.

There are many more video clips to be added shortly, so watch this space.

[youtube r48HqSEQYfA]

Thierry Vrain – Part 2: We get a tour around the farm, starting with the meditating labyrinth that they made in the corner which is full of gravel and not suitable for growing vegetables. The adjacent pond is blue-green from the minerals in the clay at the bottom of the pond. Moving on to the vegetable garden, Thierry explains how some medicinal plants are also good as source for mulch that keeps the sun from drying out the soil, and helps growth of micro organisms to work on the fallen vegetation and turn it all into soil nutrient. There is also a fast scene of Thierry’s cat surviving an eagle attack.

[youtube S6X1dKnAgAQ]

Thierry Vrain – Part 3: We spend 21 minutes out in Thierry’s farm and learn about soil biology and the role played by bacteria, fungi, and how photosynthesis was invented by the bacteria before implanting themselves into evolving trees that had the chloroplast. He and Peggy join talks with Tony in explaining how the sunlight and CO2 are worked on by the trees along with nutrients from the soil, and how the tree takes and also gives back into the soil sugars and proteins for the bacteria and fungi that in turn give the plants the minerals it needs. It is necessary to understand the relationship, so that agriculture can be understood and why industrial chemical or GMO are not the solution to either improve plant biology, or soil condition or nutrition value in our food.

[youtube TDuKW4c1cEU]

Exposing the faulty science behind GMO

Thierry Vrain – Part 4: In this video of under 12 minutes, Dr. Thierry Vrain comes to describe his profession as a soil biologist turned genetic engineer, and explained how, since the human genome project was completed in 2002, it dawned on folks on the complexity of genes that shattered the old idea of a one-gene one-protein theory. This also meant, the GMO technology used by the biotech industry was based on a faulty assumption of how genes work, and how dangerous the consequences of that faulty science can be.

[youtube _haVyyFfnA8]

PODCAST : At bottom of this page, and also on iTunes, is the 12 and half minute audio podcast of the above video #4, on GMO.

Letters to Vancouver Sun about GMO

4v208_VancouverSun

This issue covers letters written to Vancouver Sun rebutting an industry lobby group’s letter to editor that provides misinformation to promote GM seeds. People that wrote the letters read them out for the Podcast, such as Phil Harrison, Bobbie BLair, and myself. You can find it at the bottom of this blog page.

Not a dull moment. A few days ago, I was unaware of the existence of CropLife Canada or its link with GMO. By today, I have seen a dozen people write to the Vancouver Sun, protesting a letter published there on April 22, by the president of CropLife, Lorne Hepworth. I learned that in effect CropLife has financial incentive to see more sale of Monsanto agri-products in Canada.

I came to know if it through emails, linking the web page for the digital version of the paper. Then I found reference to it on Facebook and on Twitter. I finally saw the actual article on a hard copy of the paper at Mr. Tal Lee’s home.

The article promotes GMO for Canada, claims that modern plant breeding technology helps the farmer, is safe for humans and environment and makes food cheaper. It claims farmers across the world are rapidly adopting GM seeds. It also claims millions of farmers in 28 countries are planting biotech crops. It does not substantiate its claims, most of which could be considered as misinformation.

So, in response, a number of folks wrote back to the news paper with their views. I was one of them. We decided not only to write to Vancouver Sun, but to create our own news outlets. This blog is one of them. We shall also read aloud our letters and create audio files for podcasts that will appear in this blog and also on iTunes.

Here is the first response to it, from Ms Bobbie Blair of Langley, BC:

From: Bobbie Blair
Sent: Monday, April 22, 2013 6:00 PM
To: ‘sunletters@vancouversun.com
Subject: CropLife Industry Propaganda… masked as a story?
Hello,

I am a Langley resident who has a busy life, as a mom with a young child who also has a demanding career. However, since last summer, I have taken time that I DON’T ACTUALLY HAVE away from work and family, to try to create awareness in our community about the frightening implications of transgenic (GMO) crops. I came across this story you published today:

http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Genetically+modified+food+welcome+innovation/8275752/story.html

After learning about GMOs and then doing more research, I was absolutely shocked that our governments were allowing Biotech corporations like Monsanto to not only play with nature (genetic pollution cannot be contained once released into the environment), but to play roulette with our health as well.  We are not talking about hybridization, but activities are “invasive to the plant at a cellular level” inserting foreign DNA (animal, human) into plants, and even, as in BT corn and BT cotton, inserting the insecticide into the cells of plants, so that the plant “grows” its own insecticide from the inside out (and then we eat that corn in our processed foods, and eat the meat and dairy from animals fed this stuff… YUMMO!)  But Monsanto (the largest Biotech corporation) created DDT, Agent Orange, PCBs and RoudUp, so they are a chemical company looking to control the seed market and the chemical pesticide and herbicides used.  In Monsanto’s perfect world, all seeds grown are patented by them, and sprayed with their chemicals worldwide. This is their mission. CropLife works for them, promoting their products. Simple as that.

GMOs are patented seeds that have NEVER been independently tested for safety by either our government, not the US government. On top of this, many farmers have been destroyed by the patented seeds blowing into their fields. (Destroyed financially, emotionally and also literally due to farmer suicides).  Biotech corporations have been given the authority, under patent law, to sue a farmer for patent infringement when in fact he does not want their seeds, and their presence in his fields is unwelcome. (Any right- thinking person of average intelligence sees at once that this is not right, and not the way laws normally are written in a great country such as ours).  Why is it that the Biotech Industry is allowed to bully farmers, and put their untested (“scientific” studies paid for and conducted by the Biotech industry do NOT count) Franken foods into our food system UNLABELLED? Does any of this sound exaggerated?? I will tell you, I thought a lot of the stuff I came across online had to be exaggerated, as it was so outrageous, so I went to the SFU library, where I found books that supported the horrifying stuff I discovered online. I am not a Genetic Scientist or a professor of Biology or Environmental Studies or anyone with such credentials, but I can put you in touch with such experts, if you wish.

 I will tell you, it is EXTREME CONCERN that forces a busy working mom like myself, to take time that I do not have to spare, become an activist and take up a cause.  However, I realized that if we do not wake up and take back control of our food, our farmers are going to be reduced to serfs of corporations, and we will lose all choice and access to truly natural and organically grown food. I feel like I am fighting for my daughter’s future, and that we are actually standing at a crossroads right now.  It is hurtful and painful for someone like me, when I am trying so hard to expose the truth and spread awareness, to then see a respectable newspaper like the Vancouver Sun allow Crop Life to print pure industry propaganda, to further confuse a society that already lacks important information.

I can only assume that you were not aware of what you were publishing when you ran the above story created by CropLife. Please do an online search on Monsanto, because CropLife works for them, and present the real facts, to set the story straight.  As a respected and responsible newspaper, this is the only right thing to do. We rely on local media to be the voice of the people, and a vehicle of truth. I am sure that now that you know, you will set the record straight.

Bobbie Blair

 Next, is the letter written by Phil Harrison:
From: PHIL Harrison
Subject: Letter to editor
Date: 22 April, 2013 11:12:50 PM PDT
To: News <sunletters@vancouversun.com>
 
Dear editor:
 
I like to respond to the one sided article  “Genetically modified food is welcome innovation”.  It should be noted that Crop Life Canada represents Monsanto and the other companies making genetically modified organisms, GMOs. The information presented is very much the industry spin. 
  
The article talks about the claims of reduced herbicide use that these products allow.  Although this is true for the first few years, over time the weeds develop a resistance to the herbicide.  This has forced farmers to spray more and more herbicide for the same result.  The resistance now has developed to the point that many weeds are completely immune.  Monsanto has addressed this by developing new, more toxic versions of herbicide resistance plants.  I think this proves that the reduced pesticide use claim now being made is at best misleading, if not downright dishonest.
 
Another point I’d like to make is on the safety testing of GMOs.  There are no independent studies done on new GMOs being released into the market place.  All studies done in North America are done by industry.  The company standing to make an immense amount of money on the release of the GMOs can not be trusted to make an honest assessment of their safety.  However, Health Canada takes industry’s assurance of safety at face value and approves them.  This process does not give me any confidence in the integrity of the process.
 
I’d like to point out that 65 districts and municipalities in BC have been persuaded of their risks to pass resolutions opposing GMOs being grown in their area.
I hope that the paper will print an article that discusses the many health and environmental risks these products pose.
 
Phil Harrison

Next is my letter:

From: Tony Mitra
Subject: Genetically modified food is not yet welcome
Date: 23 April, 2013 1:06:56 AM PDT
To: sunopinion@vancouversun.com
 
Re: Letter to the editor dated April 22, 2013 – Genetically modified food is welcome innovation
 
 
The article declares opinion and not factual data on benefit of GM food. 
 
Since the technology is primarily poison related, with pesticide in the soil, or toxin in plant  DNA, precautionary principle calls for a thorough independent long term analysis of potential harm to health and environment and potential loss of biodiversity.
 
There is evidence that with the introduction of GM crop, alternative seeds slowly disappear, leaving the patented GM seed as the sole option in a model that promotes mono-culture. This in effect amounts to a loss of biodiversity, and a shrinkage of seed independence and food security of a nation.
 
The Irish potato famine is a good example where the whole nation was planting only one kind of crop, and when a specialized pest attacked it, it destroyed the entire nations potato and brought on their worst famine in history. There is a danger of that happening with mono-culture regime in any crop.
 
There is also the issue of food security and if Canadian farmers should lose the ability to choose what variety of crop strain they wish to plant, and only have one kind of patented seed available in the market, controlled by a foreign corporation. This can be taken as a nation losing its food independence.
 
Finally, the patent holders exert an unprecedented control over lab analysis of their products claiming intellectual property rights. Only with permission of the patent holder can scientific study be done on merit of GM seeds. Even then, the results must be shown to the patent holder before publication and if the result is not flattering, it cannot be published. In short, the patent holder has the veto power to stop any negative report of their product. In a letter published in Scientific American magazine in Aug 2009 the editors write that scientists must ask seed companies for permission before publishing independent research on genetically modified crops, and that this restriction must end. The very fact that analysis is restricted raises doubt about the usefulness of GM food.
 
There is an increasing body of evidence and data available from outside of North America, such as from Europe and India which raises doubts about Genetically modified seeds.
 
Further, there is a rise in obesity and other problems of health in the US over the past decade, along with similar increase in average intake of GM food per person. This does not definitively prove a link between GM food and ill-health. However, it indicates a possibility. Therefore, even more rigorous study should be made to check possible negative health effects of GM food.
 
It is important to remember that it took a hundred years to establish a definite link between smoking and lung cancer. Therefore, with just a decade of use of GM food products, and without serious independent scientific analysis of their effect, one cannot claim that GM crops pose no health risks to mankind.
 
Therefore, it stands to reason that Canada should consider a moratorium on any GM crop till such time as more definitive scientific analyses can be concluded that prove these crops to be either beneficial or otherwise.
 
Tony Mitra

And here is a letter written by Dr. Thierry Vrain, rebutting a different but related piece by Robert Wager of Comox Valley (http://www.canada.com/What+really+happened+AVICC+regarding/8280922/story.html). We got the rebuttal from Thierry himself in an email.

Dear Mr Wager,

I retired 10 years ago after a long career as a research scientist for Agriculture Canada.  When I was on the payroll I was the designated scientist of my Institute to address public groups and reassure them that genetically engineered crops and foods were safe.   I don’t know if I was passionate about it but I was knowledgeable.   Like you I took side and I defended the bright side.  The side of technological advance, of science and progress.  

  I have in the last 10 years changed my position.  I started paying attention to the flow of published studies coming from Europe, some from prestigious labs and published in prestigious scientific journals, that questioned the impact and safety of engineered food.  I was the speaker after you at the AVICC convention in Sooke.  Your presentation intended to reassure the audience that genetic engineering is necessary to feed the hungry world of the future, and that the food derived from engineered crops is not different from the non engineered food.  I thought it was bold of you to make the sweeping statement during the question period that all I had said was pseudo-science.  You appear to be a passionate man, emotional and knowledgeable about your topic.   And very dedicated to reassure the public in your opinion letters to the Globe and Mail and other newspapers.  

In my presentation following yours I refuted each of the claims of the biotechnology companies that their engineered crops yield more, that they require less pesticide applications, that they have no impact on the environment and of course that they are safe to eat.  My presentation was basically a review of over 100 separate published studies.   There is a good number of scientific studies that have been done for Monsanto by Universities in the USA, Canada, and abroad.   Most of these studies are concerned with the field performance of the engineered crops, and of course they find GMOs safe for the environment and therefore safe to eat.  There is however an overwhelming and growing body of scientific research done mostly in Europe, Russia, and other countries, showing that diets containing engineered corn or soya cause serious health problems in laboratory mice and rats.  Mice and rats are the canary in the mine.  We use them to test the safety of a lot of pharmaceuticals and other chemicals.  We should all take these studies seriously and demand that the government agencies replicate them rather than rely on studies paid for by the biotech companies.

The Bt corn and soya plants that are now everywhere in our environment, are registered as insecticides.  But are these insecticidal plants regulated and have their proteins been tested for safety?   Not by the federal departments in charge of food safety, not in Canada and not in the USA.   There are no long term feeding studies performed in these countries to demonstrate the claims that engineered corn and soya are safe.   All we have are scientific studies out of Europe and Russia, showing that rats fed engineered food die prematurely, with breast cancer, and kidney and liver damage.   All these studies are compiled and referenced in a report published last June called GMO Myths and Truths – available for free at Earth Open Source.

These studies show that proteins produced by engineered plants are different than what they should be.   Inserting a gene in a genome using this technology can and does result in damaged proteins.  The scientific literature is full of studies showing that engineered corn and soya contain toxic or allergenic proteins.  

Genetic engineering is 40 years old.  It is based on the naïve understanding of the genome based on the One Gene – one Protein hypothesis of 70 years ago, that each gene codes for a single protein.  The Human Genome project completed in 2002 showed that this hypothesis is wrong.  The whole paradigm of the genetic engineering technology is based on a misunderstanding, and ignoring of the new knowledge.  Every scientist now learns that any gene can give more than one protein and that inserting a gene anywhere in a plant eventually creates rogue proteins.   Some of these proteins are obviously allergenic or toxic.  

It appears that many people in the Comox Valley are concerned enough.  Our latest local poll in the CV Echo was 95% of people in this valley want labeling or an outright ban of engineered product.   This is our local reality, I cannot speak for the rest of Vancouver Island but I suspect that the AVICC delegates voted “what their constituents want”.

Thank you for your consideration Mr Wager, I don’t suppose that we will ever reconcile our positions.   For my part I will keep pushing and writing to alert the public and government agencies until the safety studies are initiated.  I assume that you will keep your reassuring stance as well.

Respecfully,

Dr. Thierry Vrain

Next letter is from Brandie Nadiger-Harrop, which is expected to be published in Vancouver sun by Friday, April 26th.

Brandie Nadiger-Harrop to Vancouver Sun
 
My take on the GMO food in our food system
 
Recent stories, studies and suggestions have been surfacing regarding genetically modified organisms, and the confusion out there has inspired me to write what I have learned over the years in my own research on the subject.
 
There are no government agencies anywhere doing long-term testing on the safety of genetically engineered (or GMO) crops. Nearly all studies on the subject are funded and supported by the biotechnology industry and it’s peers. The USA called the engineered products “substantially equivalent” to their conventional counterparts, and that has been used, unquestioningly and blindly, as a scientific truth with zero independent research supporting the phrase. 
 
GMOs are NOT good for the environment. Cross contamination with conventional and organic crops destroys any options for people who do not want to consume GMO & for food companies that don’t want to use them. The diversity of our food supply is dwindling due to GMOs as older varieties fade away in the world of the monocultured GM fields and as contamination spreads. There is also the fact that since the excessive growing of GM crops, the bees and butterflies are dying. We need our pollinators for food, we MUST look into this! Herbicide being sprayed directly onto GM Roundup Ready crops is now being found in the air we breathe, the water we drink and in our food. The government’s answer to this? Raise the acceptable level of what the food contains! That is looking out for our health and well being?
 
Recent tests also show that the natural microbial balance in our soil is dying off, affecting worms and all aspects of our croplands. We are effectively killing our growing medium with these products! That is good for us or our environment? In David Suzuki’s documentary, the Silent Forest, he talks about how the toxins living inside the plant leach into the ground and eventually into our water. 
 
Biotech industries would have you believe that farmers are embracing GMOs but I beg to differ. The farmers at my farmer’s market have all lobbied the government in protest to no avail. If the farmers are embracing them, then why is the National Farmer’s Union doing mass protests like the Canada-wide Day of Action on April 9th to protest GMO alfalfa? That doesn’t really sound much like “embracing” to me. 
There are new studies coming out every week on the potential risks of GMOs, but no one seems to be listening. A long term study in France came out at the end of last year proving that GMO’s and glyphosate cause tumours, cancer and infertility. Take a look at the human cancer numbers before genetic engineering, and after it infiltrated 80% of out processed foods. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that something is dreadfully wrong with our food supply. Lack of labeling has made it impossible to directly tie GM ingredients to disease, and that is a wise angle the biotech companies spend millions on to defend.
 
Biotech companies would have the public believe that protesters are few and using old data to create fear mongering, that the majority of the public and farmers want this. If most are for this, why is Canada starting to protest? Canadians almost never protest. How are we able to organize country-wide protests and having good turnouts at every rally all across Canada, with the farmers AND the consumer? If the world really loves this then why are they banned or labeled in 61 countries?? Probably not because they think GMOs are safe. Also, if the world is “embracing GMOs”, why is there a worldwide protest happening on May 25th? 252 cities in 37 countries on 7 continents?? It is going to be the largest world protest ever seen. That once again doesn’t sound like the world embracing GMO, it sounds like the world is embracing their right to NOT have GMOs on their plates or in their countries. 
 
The biotech industry would love for the public to believe that anti-GMO supporters are a few crazy people belonging to special interest groups that are more concerned with fundraising than with health concerns. The people of many groups such as GMO Free Canada and Millions Against Monsanto all donate their time and efforts, using money out of their own pockets to fund their printing and travel. The organic industry pays with their own money to defend their livelihood from GMO contamination. 
 
BC now has 16 GMO free zones and Vancouver Island is now fighting to become a GMO free zone. That’s a lot more than just a select few crazy misinformed people…THAT is the GENERAL PUBLIC!
sincerely Brandie Harrop 
member of the board GMO Free Canada

 

PODCAST

We are trying to get folks that wrote the letter to read them out in their own voice, to prepare an audio podcast of it. So far we have only a few letters covered. But we expect the podcast to get longer as more contribute. You can find the podcast at the bottom of this page.