Genetically Modified Crops – Farmers Were Promised Higher Yields

Originally Published December 8, 2009
Written by Roger Langford.

In 1996 Monsanto ™ introduced commercially a genetically modified cotton with in-seed insect-protection against the cotton bollworm. In 1997 Monsanto ™ introduced commercially an engineered corn which had in-built protection from the European corn borer. Also, that year, a new transgenic cotton variety which had both bollworm resistance and glyphosate tolerant properties.

Farmers were promised higher yields and lower costs and thus more profit if they grew these transgenic plants. Have the biotech companies been able to deliver on these promises.

Generally yields from genetically modified crops tend to be lower than conventional grown crops and the GM crops use more toxic chemicals like the herbicide glyphosate. By the way glyphosate is so toxic it will kill all ordinary (natural) plants. Only transgenic plants modified to be tolerant of glyphosate will still survive and grow after being sprayed with this herbicide.

India.

According to Andrew Malone writing in the Daily Mail, it is true what Prince Charles said about thousands of farmers in the Maharashtra state, India, committing suicide after running up large debts due to the crop failure of genetically engineered pest proof varieties of cotton. The farmers were promised that the genetically engineered Bt cotton would not need pesticides, would be free of disease and insect pests. Instead their Bt cotton was devastated by the parasite pink bollworm. This was because the BT cotton is resistant to green bollworm but not pink bollworm.

Though the yields were lower some forty percent of farmers did manage to make a small profit, as compared to the sixty percent of farmers who made a loss, from growing the BT cotton. But because the quality of Bt cotton is poor, the fibres are shorter, farmers are paid less per kilo. So farmers who grow Bt cotton have lower yields and get lower returns on the cotton they do produce. Why would any farmer want to grow genetically engineered Bt cotton.

To make matters worse the seeds sold to the farmers are "terminator" seeds. This means that the cotton crop only produces infertile seeds. So even if the farmer does manage to get even a low yield of cotton he can not use these seeds to plant next years crop but has to buy new seeds every year and these genetically engineered seeds are very expensive.

South Africa.

Farmers in three provinces – North West, Free State and Mpumalanga, in South Africa – have had up to eighty percent crop failure with three varieties of genetically modified corn. Monsanto ™ blamed the crop failures on an error in the laboratory, made during the seed production process. Opponents of genetically modified food, however, say that the science behind genetic engineering is flawed.

Super-weeds.

Another disadvantage of growing genetically modified crops that are made to be tolerant of glyphosate is that over time when crops are sprayed with glyphosate in order to kill the weeds, the weeds also become resistant to the weed killer. According to The International Survey of Herbicide Resistant Weeds (weedscience.org) there are now nine weed species, in different areas within the United States, that are resistant to glyphosate. The top, most resistant species are:

• Amaranthus palmeri - Palmer Amaranth
• Amaranthus rudis - Common Waterhemp
• Ambrosia artemisiifolia - Common Ragweed
• Ambrosia trifida - Giant Ragweed
• Conyza canadensis - Horseweed

When you consider that glyphosate is one of the most toxic and one of the most popular of all weed killers then once a weed species becomes tolerant to it, it may be difficult to find a weed killer that will kill the weeds but leave the food crop standing.

When farmers are finding their land infested with these super-weeds they are been advised to increase the amount of glyphosate they normally use on the food crop and if this does not solve the problem they are advised to add a selection of different herbicides. So farmers end up spraying the food crops with many different types of herbicides including large amounts of glyphosate.

When you consider that herbicide residues are found in all food crops sprayed with these weed killers. The toxic residues of all of these herbicides in genetically engineered crops must be very high.

Farmers also have to bear the extra cost of buying and using more glyphosate and buying and using other herbicides. This will add to their costs and, of course, lower their profits.

Georgia, United States.

The state of Georgia is being invaded, not by Triffids, but by pigweed (Palmer Amaranth). Over one-hundred thousand acres of farmland in Georgia is severely infested with this glyphosate tolerant superweed says weed specialist Stanley Culpepper from Georgia University.

Pigweed is a fast-growing, drought-resistant, incredibly prolific weed that smothers the cotton plants starving them of sunlight, nutrients and water. The infestation has got so bad that some farmers are weeding their cotton crops by hand. Other farmers are giving up and abandoning their land to the weeds.

Long Term Trends.

Growing genetically modified crops may, in some circumstances, offer quick profits to farmers but over the long term the evidence seems to suggest that any farmer who decides to stop growing conventional crops and change to genetically modified varieties will find his yields reducing and his costs increasing.

© Copyright 2009 Roger Langford. All Rights Reserved

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