Thursday 28 January 2010
USA science Adviser makes ass of herself
Hillary Clinton`s ``science advisor`` Nina Federoff makes an ass of herself
By Trevor Wells
Farmers' Legal Action Group - South Africa
Special Adviser to the USA Government for Science and Technology today made some absurd and unfounded statements in New Zealand, in an article by Eloise Gibson of the New Zealand Herald.
In the article headlined "GM fears may harm the needy" Hillary Clinton's science adviser Nina Fedoroff said, "People will starve if climate change cuts water supplies and raises temperatures while people remain too afraid to use genetically modified crops." The first part is true but what exactly has "while people remain too afraid of genetically modified crops" got to do with starvation, climate change or water cuts?
She needs to explain exactly what she means by this.
There are no commercialised genetically modified crops that will prevent climate change, affect water supplies, survive droughts or survive raised temperatures. So what is she talking about?
How are genetically modified crops going to help people survive climate change?
My 8 year old grandson tells me that they will implant cockroach genes into humans so that they will survive climate change. This is no more absurd than Nina's statement. We all know that cockroaches can survive intense heat, so why not?
She is well qualified to answer these questions as she has written a book "Mendel in the Kitchen: A Scientist's View of Genetically Modified Foods" which is said to examine the scientific and societal issues surrounding the introduction of artificial genetic modification to adapt to stressful environments.
She further stated today, that in 30 years of laboratory tests and 15 years' commercial production "nobody had documented so much as a headache".
Perhaps she can tell us what laboratory testing has been conducted on humans?
The article goes on to say that the US Government is among the biggest supporters of GM technology and many crops are owned by a US firm, Monsanto.
The US government relies entirely on tests done on rats by laboratories employed by Monsanto. The standard is to use at least 3 differing mammal species. The US Government does not insist on this standard.
In a series of the most comprehensive tests ever performed using GM foods, the independent University of Caen has positively linked organ failure to mammals fed three commercially available Monsanto GM corn products.
Special Adviser to the USA Government for Science and Technology today made some absurd and unfounded statements in New Zealand, in an article by Eloise Gibson of the New Zealand Herald.
In the article headlined "GM fears may harm the needy" Hillary Clinton's science adviser Nina Fedoroff said, "People will starve if climate change cuts water supplies and raises temperatures while people remain too afraid to use genetically modified crops." The first part is true but what exactly has "while people remain too afraid of genetically modified crops" got to do with starvation, climate change or water cuts?
She needs to explain exactly what she means by this.
There are no commercialised genetically modified crops that will prevent climate change, affect water supplies, survive droughts or survive raised temperatures. So what is she talking about?
How are genetically modified crops going to help people survive climate change?
My 8 year old grandson tells me that they will implant cockroach genes into humans so that they will survive climate change. This is no more absurd than Nina's statement. We all know that cockroaches can survive intense heat, so why not?
She is well qualified to answer these questions as she has written a book "Mendel in the Kitchen: A Scientist's View of Genetically Modified Foods" which is said to examine the scientific and societal issues surrounding the introduction of artificial genetic modification to adapt to stressful environments.
She further stated today, that in 30 years of laboratory tests and 15 years' commercial production "nobody had documented so much as a headache".
Perhaps she can tell us what laboratory testing has been conducted on humans?
The article goes on to say that the US Government is among the biggest supporters of GM technology and many crops are owned by a US firm, Monsanto.
The US government relies entirely on tests done on rats by laboratories employed by Monsanto. The standard is to use at least 3 differing mammal species. The US Government does not insist on this standard.
In a series of the most comprehensive tests ever performed using GM foods, the independent University of Caen has positively linked organ failure to mammals fed three commercially available Monsanto GM corn products.
Wednesday 27 January 2010
South Africans win patent case against German Willy Wonker
JOY AS PELARGONIUM PATENT REVOKED
Munich 26 January 2010.
The Opposition Division of the European Patent Office (EPO) has today
revoked a patent granted to Dr. Willmar Schwabe (Schwabe) in its entirety.
The patent was opposed by the African Centre for Biosafety (ACB) from
South Africa acting on behalf of a rural community in Alice, in the
Eastern Cape, in collaboration with the Swiss anti-biopiracy watchdog, the
Berne Declaration.
The patent was in respect of a method for producing extracts of
Pelargonium sidoides and Pelargonium reniforme to make Schwabe's
blockbuster cough and colds syrup, Umckaloabo. It was revoked because the
Opposition Division found that the patent did not satisfy the requirements
of the European Patent Convention dealing with inventiveness.
Both species of pelargonium are harvested from the wild in the Eastern
Cape and exported to Europe for the production of Umckaloabo.
Nomtunzi Api, a representative from the Alice community, expressed elation
in response to the revocation, "this is the first time that a patent is
challenged successfully by Africans. It gives us hope for the future
because the patent ends Schwabe's monopoly over the use of our genetic
resources and traditional knowledge."
According to Mariam Mayet of the ACB, "Patent systems are seriously
flawed. It is inherently unfair that public interest NGOs should have to
challenge patents, at enormous effort and expense, to bring about equity
and justice in protecting resources and traditional knowledge from the
South"
For more information, please see the ACB website at
www.biosafetyafrica.org.za
• Mariam Mayet: Cell +27 83 269 4309
• Nomtunzi Api in Germany until 28th January: Tel +49 (0) 8954 90 340 Room
301.
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Tuesday 26 January 2010
Scientific evidence to prove GM Food causes Organ Failure
Kofi Annan says no to GMO's in Africa
Republished to remind Bill Gates Foundfation of their promises
""We in the alliance will not incorporate GMO's in our programmes. We shall work with farmers using traditional seeds."
By Trevor Wells
The Farmers' Legal Action Group-South Africa welcomes the first firm announcement that the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) will not fund Genetically Modified seeds by the new Chief Executive of AGRA, Kofi Annan
The announcement today,17-July-2007, was reported in Business Daily (Kenya), in an article by Allan Odhiamo headlined "Annan rules out the use of GMO's in the war on hunger in Africa."
The former United Nations General-Secretary said "Poor pricing of commodities, and not type of seeds, keeps African growers away from their farmlands despite spiraling food insecurity and poverty on the continent."
This is complete turn around by the Gates/Rockefeller Foundation who up to now have been hell bent on forcing GM seeds down the throats of the African people.
The previous Green Revolution was severely criticised for removing peasant farmers off their heritage lands to be replaced by huge agrobusiness farms in third world Countries. It was hailed as a huge success in first world countries which reaped the benefits of cheap food from the south. Apologists for the system claimed that they had raise levels of employment.
This announcement comes in the wake of the South African Government applying due diligence in rejecting an application by the African Biofortified Sorghum(ABS) Consortium to do trials in South Africa with an American patented sorghum gene. The Consortium claimed it was a truly African Sorghum. According to the ABS website "the consortium comprised nine "seven African and two American" institutions led by Africa Harvest Biotech Foundation International(AHBFI). Africa Harvest's communication activities have been supported byCropLife, a global federation 'representing the plant science industry' and led by companies like BASF, Bayer CropScience, Dow AgroSciences, DuPont , Monsanto and Syngenta. According to the AHBFI Funding Statement they are a well-resourced and highly professional lobbying operation. The US$18.5 million project was funded as part of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's Grand Challenge in Global Health program."
The rejection by the South African Government was based on the results of scientific research funded by US-AID and done by Dr Gurling Bothma of the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) in Roodeplats.The research proved conclusively that all native African relatives of sorghum including Sudan Grass would be adulterated by the American patented gene. Being an African, Kofi Annan, fully understands the spiritual connection between the land, the seeds,and the ancestors.
Kofi's inaugural speech in Cape Town can be read on the new Agra-alliance.org website launched to coincide with the official announcement of his appointment.
The website confirms that the Alliance "Programe for Africa's Seed Systems" (PASS) is funding African-led initiatives that use conventional breeding to develop new varieties of maize, cassava, beans, rice, sorghum, and other crops resistant to diseases and pests."
Credible community based farmers organisations with the links to AGRA are sadly missing from their website.
The list is still overweighted with international and African organisations who have no standing or legitimacy at grassroots community farming level in the African context. This however is a legacy of the past largely due to funding by biotech industry fronts, the World Bank and US-AID. What is pleasing is that the usual biotech brigade and industry front organisations have been very wisely, surgically cleansed from the list. It is clear that with the disastrous record of smuggling, bribery and racketeering which some of them are burdened with, would prove to be the kiss of death for AGRA.
Concerned African environmental groups and communal farmers have been monitoring behind the scenes, top level, negotiations for some months. The clear, unequivocle announcement not to finance GM0's together with the appointment of former UN-Secretary General Kofi Annan as the Chairperson of AGRA sends out a clear signal that good faith negotiation with a view to building long term relationships is the way forward.
Farmers' Legal Action Group- South Africa
www.flag-sa.org/blog/rallyround.html
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