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genetically modified organisms

A collection of 70 posts

aerial view of green grass field during daytime

Bayer Ordered to Pay $2.25 Billion After Jury Links Herbicide Roundup to Cancer

“Another huge award against Roundup (glyphosate). NOTE: this article was originally published to WashintonPost.com on January 27, 2023. It was written by Frances Vinall. A jury handed down a $2.25 billion verdict, including $2 billion in punitive damages, against agrochemical giant Monsanto, according to the lawyers of a

Glyphosate for Breakfast?

Glyphosate for Breakfast?

As discussed below, “American applications of Glyphosate – the most heavily-used chemical weed killer in human history – increased sixteen-fold between 1987 and 2007. Today, traces of the chemical are found far from the farm. It is so widespread that unless you live in a bubble and grow your own food, it’

Is Widespread Pesticide Use Connected To Grassland Bird Declines?

Is Widespread Pesticide Use Connected To Grassland Bird Declines?

“This article discusses the relationship between grassland bird declines and a host of poisons increasingly used by ranchers, farmers and homeowners. The root problem according to the author, is the seeming “capture” of the pesticide regulatory system, in both Canada and U.S., by the chemical industry and its well-funded

Farm Animals May Soon Get New Features Through Gene Editing

Farm Animals May Soon Get New Features Through Gene Editing

Hybridization of plants and animals is as old as agriculture. However, most GMOs have made plants more tolerant to herbicides, and thus are essentially drivers for the agrochemical companies that sell both the seeds and poisons. NOTE: this article was originally published to APNews.com on November 15, 2018. It

Saying No to Glyphosate in Our Foods, Environment

Saying No to Glyphosate in Our Foods, Environment

Quoting sources for the article appearing below, ” … glyphosate is the most dangerous environmental chemical we face today due to its unique mechanism of toxicity, careless application, and pervasive presence.” NOTE: this article was originally published to TheEpochTimes.com on May 2, 2022. It was written by Melissa Diane Smith Of

Deadly Diseases From Wildlife Thrive When Nature is Destroyed, Study Finds

Deadly Diseases From Wildlife Thrive When Nature is Destroyed, Study Finds

“As discussed below, much of what is wrong with human health originates in our agricultural practices. NOTE: this article was originally published to TheGuardian.com on August 5, 2020. It was written by Damian Carrington. Rats and bats that host pandemic pathogens like Covid-19 increase in damaged ecosystems, analysis shows

planet based impossible burger meat

‘Plant-Based Meat’ May Be Problematic After All

“Is fake meat safe? NOTE: this article was originally published to YourAmericaNews on July 22, 2019. There’s a substantial push in America to have “plant-based meat” replace the real McCoy. So far, sales have outpaced demand, but some journalists have exposed possible health concerns with the genetically modified food.

Don’t Freak Out About the IPCC Report

Did the IPCC Say We Must Quit Eating Meat?

The climate activists are widely reporting that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has declared that we all have to be vegetarians. But is that true? As quoted below, IPCC’s 107 climate-change gurus recently said, “Balanced diets, featuring plant-based foods, such as those based on coarse grains, legumes, fruits

Birds Are Vanishing From North America

Birds Are Vanishing From North America

This is not about “climate change”. It’s about agricultural chemicals. NOTE: this article was originally published to NYTimes.com on January 13, 2019. It was written by Karen Weintraub. The number of birds in the United States and Canada has declined by 3 billion, or 29 percent, over the

The War On Nature

"Invasion Biology"

The War On Nature

Quoting the authors below, “In reality, the problem is not herbicide resistant weeds; it is the perception that they are an enemy that must be destroyed at all costs. Military imagery – especially words like “war” and “battle “- is very common in the literature on weed control. But there is

Banish Roundup From the Farm? It’ll Take More Than Lawsuits

Banish Roundup From the Farm? It’ll Take More Than Lawsuits

Considering that three generations of American farmers, ranchers and wildlife managers have been taught that pesticides are inherently safe, and the answer to most agricultural problems can be found in a bottle, the attitudes expressed in the article below are no surprise. What is very surprising is that there is

three middle age men picking fruits from stand in new york

Secret of a New York Farm Stand’s Success: An Eye for the Next Big Thing

“Growing better food with technology and farmers from one of the world’s oldest, most advanced agricultural nations: Egypt. NOTE: this article was originally published to NYTimes.com on July 30, 2019. It was written by Priya Krishna. Photographs were taken by Shane Lavalette. The Greenmarket go-to for high-end chefs

Bayer’s Roundup Woes Deepen as Germany Bans Key Chemical

Bayer’s Roundup Woes Deepen as Germany Bans Key Chemical

“Considering that the Europeans are far ahead of the US in their efforts to address the health and environmental hazards of agricultural chemicals, including glyphosate (Roundup), it is incredible that Bayer management – a European group – approved the Monsanto acquisition, thereby trapping Bayer in this company-killing tarbaby. NOTE: this article initially

Citrus Farmers Facing Deadly Bacteria Turn to Antibiotics, Alarming Health Officials

Citrus Farmers Facing Deadly Bacteria Turn to Antibiotics, Alarming Health Officials

Dr. William A. Albrecht, often called the “Father of Soil Fertility” was Chairman of the Department of Soils at the University of Missouri. He was dismissed as an alarmist when speaking about the problems discussed in the article below. 70-years ago he wrote, “The use of sprays is an act

Bayer’s Roundup Problem Slashes Its Market Value

Bayer’s Roundup Problem Slashes Its Market Value

Many of the mergers and acquisitions that harm companies, workers and customers are motivated by bonuses—the ones that managers and boards pay themselves for putting these deals together. Even so, Bayer’s acquisition of Monsanto seems suicidal given the well-known harm caused by Roundup® (glyphosate). The notion that Bayer’

What Foods Are Banned in Europe but Not Banned in the U.S.?

What Foods Are Banned in Europe but Not Banned in the U.S.?

The Europeans are far more conscious of food safety and quality than the United States. Whatever our criticisms of their system, they are far ahead of us in this respect. NOTE: this article was originally published to NYTimes.com on December 28, 2018. It was written by Roni Caryn Rabin.

Game Ranch Fined for Pesticide Misuse in Hill Country Bat Cave Incident

Game Ranch Fined for Pesticide Misuse in Hill Country Bat Cave Incident

Pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizers, antibiotics and countless harmful additives are used on our farms and ranches every day. The only differences in the events described in this article and millions of similar episodes across the country is that bats enjoy broad protection under the Endangered Species Act and related agency

Will Mushrooms Be Magic for Threatened Bees?

"Invasion Biology"

Will Mushrooms Be Magic for Threatened Bees?

Seventy years ago, Dr. William Albrecht, the “Father of Soil Fertility,” wrote, “It’s not the overpowering invader we must fear but the weakened condition of the victim.” Outbreaks of parasite-spread diseases must be treated if possible, but treating symptoms can’t be confused with treating causes. While symptoms, both

Can Eating Organic Food Lower Your Cancer Risk?

cancer diagnoses

Can Eating Organic Food Lower Your Cancer Risk?

Quoting the authors below,” …the most frequent consumers of organic food had 76 percent fewer lymphomas, with 86 percent fewer non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas, and a 34 percent reduction in breast cancers that develop after menopause.” And, all these agricultural chemicals are bad for wildlife and habitat for the very same

mosquitio_malaria

Giving Malaria a Deadline

Here is a beneficial form of genetic tinkering which stands in contrast to the horrible GMOs which in reality are drivers of agro-chemical poison sales. We wiped out screwworm without poisons, and, we can do the same with malaria. NOTE: this article was originally published to NYTimes.com on September

Researchers: 80 Percent Drop in Butterflies in North Florida

Researchers: 80 Percent Drop in Butterflies in North Florida

Quoting the article below,” …researchers believe two major factors could be responsible. Milkweed is the favorite food of young monarchs, and its availability has been sharply reduced by development and by glyphosate (Roundup®), an herbicide widely used in agriculture to kill weeds.” NOTE: this article was originally published to ExpressNews.

glysophate_cancer_oats

Report Finds Traces of a Controversial Herbicide in Cheerios and Quaker Oats

“Of course glyphosate is in Cheerios: It’s in everything. Because grape growers use Roundup® (glyphosate) to suppress weeds between vines, most wine has glyphosate residue – as does beer. Cotton growers use it to defoliate plants before harvest. Farmers’ GMO seeds like soybeans and corn are modified to survive repeated

west_texas_cotton

"Invasion Biology"

A&M Cotton Research Could Open New Front in War on Weeds

Hybridization of plants and animals is as old as agriculture and a good thing unless it attacks nature. Instead of producing modified plants that withstand weeds and parasites the international agrogiants like Monsanto/Bayer turned GMO’s into a driver for their toxic chemical sales. Industrial Agriculture is stuck on

Animal Development

Coffee Beans Are Good for Birds, Fancy Brew or Not

As described in this article, naturally-raised coffee tastes better. And the practices that produce better tasting coffee benefit birdlife. Few Americans realize how much better naturally raised foods taste. Or that our Industrial Agriculture with its fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, insecticides, range poisons and antibiotics – besides dumbing down food quality, have

"Invasion Biology"

Uprooting FDR’s ‘Great Wall of Trees’

This article highlights the environmental mentality of the modern farming methods taught in our universities. As described below, farmers are destroying the Northern Great Plains shelter belts which the WPA planted – for their benefit and at great cost – during the Great Depression. Quoting the authors: “FDR, long fascinated by forestry,