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R_www.biotech-now.org 2015 01642.txt.txt

#Europe Turns its Back on Science On October 24th, The New york times published a great opinion piece titled ith G. M. O. Policies, Europe Turns Against Science. Written by Mark Lynas, political director for the Cornell Alliance for Science at Cornell University and a co-author of n Ecomodernist Manifesto, this piece argues how banning the cultivation of genetically modified crops in certain European countries will a chilling affect on scientific innovation in that part of the world. Below is a brief blurb of Marl Lynasopinion piece: Beginning with Scotland prohibition on domestic genetically modified crop cultivation on Aug 9, Europe scientists and farmers watched with mounting dismay as other countries followed suit. Following the Scottish decision, signatories from numerous scientific organizations and academic institutions wrote to the Scottish government to express grave concern bout the potential negative effect on science in Scotland.?Without a trace of embarrassment, a spokeswoman for Nicola Sturgeon, the leader of the Scottish national party, admitted that the first minister science adviser had not been consulted because the decision asn based on scientific evidence. Instead, the priority was to protect the lean green imageof the country produce, according to the secretary for rural affairs, food and environment. This decision of a majority of European countries to apparently ignore their own experts may undermine any claim to the moral high ground at the coming Paris talks on climate change. The worldwide scientific consensus on the safety of genetic engineering is as solid as that which underpins human-caused global warming. Yet this inconvenient truth on G. M. O. s that theye as safe as conventionally cultivated food is ignored when ideological interests are threatened. The scientific community is facing a new European reality. Last November, the European commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, chose not to reappoint Prof. Anne Glover as his science adviser after lobbying by Greenpeace and other environmental groups. Never mind that Professor Glover advice on G. M. O. safety reflected the scientific consensus. Mr. Juncker, hoping to make his political life easier, complied with their demand. Europe now has no chief scientific adviser. In addition, the council is worried that Europe G. M. O. phobia may slam the door on new technologies. For example the gene-editing tool known as Crispr is on the brink of revolutionizing the field of genetics internationally. The historical irony is that Europe once led in biotech: In 1983, Marc Van Montagu and Jeff Schell at the University of Ghent in Belgium introduced the world to modern plant genetic engineering. Today, however, no rational young scientist interested in molecular techniques of crop breeding would choose a base in Continental Europe. Meanwhile, hypocrisy rules: Europe imports over 30 million tons per year of corn and soy-based animal feeds, the vast majority of which are modified genetically, for its livestock industry. Imports are preferred to European crops partly because biotech traits make them cheaper. Yet these same traits such as herbicide tolerance and insect resistance are barred now widely from domestic use. In essence, Europe has chosen chemistry over biology: It will not be able to reduce fungicide applications by adopting genetically modified blight-resistant potatoes; nor can it cut down on insecticide sprays, since it won allow genetically modified insect-resistant crops to be grown. The data is clear: One study found that G. M. O. cultivation has led to a 40 percent reduction in insecticide spraying worldwide. Shielded from the winds of change behind a $50 billion wall of subsidies thanks to the European union Common agricultural policy, farmers in Europe can, arguably, afford to lose their competitive edge. But a 2011 survey estimated that European farmersfailure to adopt G. M. crops had resulted in lost revenue of between 500 million and one billion euros per year. A former British environment minister complained last year that Europe was becoming a useum of world farming. he new anti-G. M. O. policy aligns Europe with some unsavory allies. Russia has proclaimed proudly a prohibition on G. M. O. crops. So has Zimbabwe where anti-Western conspiracy theories about biotech companies have become part of the ruling party ideology. According to Tobaiwa Mudede, a crony of President Robert Mugabe, exual dysfunction is a huge problem in the U s a, . where males become impotent around the age of 24, at the prime of lifewhich he linked to G. M. O. foods. I have witnessed the effects of such propaganda myself. While giving a talk about G. M. O. s two years ago in rural Tanzania, I was interrupted by an organic farmer who said he was determined never to grow biotech crops. His grounds? That they turn his children homosexual. Following Europe lead, no country in Sub-saharan africa except South africa currently permits the cultivation of G. M. O. food crops. Yet from drought tolerant maize to virus-resistant cassava, many biotech traits are being developed that could quickly improve the livelihoods of poorer African farmers. I have spent time with malnourished children in Tanzania whose families were going hungry because cassava crops were wiped out by brown-streak disease. That was particularly painful because in neighboring Uganda I had visited recently trial plots of genetically modified cassava that demonstrated complete resistance to the virus. The faces of the hungry children come to mind every time I hear European politicians boast about their country G. M. O. ban and demand that the rest of the world follow suit as Scotland minister did in August. Thanks to Europe Coalition of the Ignorant, we are witnessing a historic injustice perpetrated by the well fed on the food insecure. Europe stance, if taken up internationally, risks marginalizing a critically important technology that we must surely employ if humanity is feed to itself sustainably in an increasingly difficult and challenging future. I can only hope that the Continent policy makers come to their senses before it is too late e

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