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Don't
Be a Lawbreaker
12-30-1999 – Edited by Gil Gullickson, The Farmer, a Farm Progress
publication
If you're planning to use soybean seed you grew on your own farm for planting
your 2000 crop, make sure you're not breaking the law. Seth Naeve, soybean
agronomist with the University of Minnesota Extension Service, cites some points
to consider before planting seed that was not purchased from a dealer
Will Bt
Crop Pollute the Soil?
December 7, 1999
In a recent letter in Nature, Dr. Guenther Stotzky and his group from New
York University reported finding the insecticidal protein from Bacillus
thuringiensis in root exudates from Bt corn varieties.
This site contains a partial list of published studies on this topic,
starting with those by Dr.Stotzky and his group:
Farmers' Insecticide use lowered with Bt Corn
Nov 29, 1999, Western Kansas Edition of the High Plains Journal
AMES, IA (AP) -- A recent Iowa State University study shows that farmers in the
Midwest who planted Bt corn reduced their insecticide use. "Researchers found that
26% of the farmers who planted Bt corn in 1998 decreased their insecticide use."
 Graphic
From Novartis on how genetic engineering works. The making of Bt corn.
http://www.seeds.novartis.com/current/topic.asp
Gene-Altered Corn's Impact Reassessed
By Rick Weiss
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 3, 1999; Page A03
Genetically engineered corn plants appear to pose only a modest and perhaps insignificant
threat to monarch butterflies, according to several new studies described yesterday at a
scientific symposium.
"We'll
Starve Without Biotech"
Martina McGloughlin
Biotechnology Program at University of California, Davis
01 November 1999
By reducing dependency on chemicals and tillage through the development of
natural fertilizers and of pest-resistant plants, biotechnology has the
potential to conserve natural resources, prevent soil erosion and improve
environmental quality. Strains of microorganisms could increase the efficiency,
capacity and variety of waste treatment. Bioprocessing using engineered microbes
offers new ways to use renewable resources for materials and fuel.
Dietitian
Tours Indiana Promoting Benefits Of Genetically Modified Foods
The News-Sentinel -- 02 November 1999
 Imagine
what it would be like for someone with a peanut or strawberry allergy to be able
to enjoy the snacks without an unpleasantreaction. Or imagine what it would be
like to have an apple tree that didn't require spraying to keep worms from the
fruit, or a gardengrowing bigger, more nutritious vegetables. Felecia Busch, a
registered dietitian out to win support for genetically modified crops, saysfood
advances of this type could be ahead for American consumers if they don't reject
the technology that can make it possible.
Genetically
modified, insect resistant corn: Implications for disease management
APSnet Feature, October 15 thru November 30, 1999
By Gary P. Munkvold Iowa State University Dept. of Plant Pathology
and Richard L. Hellmich USDA-ARS, Corn Insects and Crop Genetics Research Unit,
and Iowa State University Dept. of Entomology
BIOTECHNOLOGY:
FOOD SECURITY AND SAFETY
Economic Perspectives
An Electronic Journal of the U.S. Department of State
Vol. 4, No. 4, October 1999
The Office of International Information Programs of the U.S. Department of State
provides products and services that explain U.S. policies to foreign audiences. The Office
publishes five electronic journals that examine major issues facing the United States and
the international community. The journals -- Economic Perspectives, Global Issues,
Issues of Democracy, U.S. Foreign Policy Agenda, and U.S. Society and Values --
provide analysis, commentary, and background information in their thematic areas. All
journal editions appear in English, French, and Portuguese language versions, and selected
issues also appear in Arabic, Russian, and Spanish.
Lugar Opening
Statement – Biotechnology
Date: 10/6/99
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar today delivered the following statement at a
Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee on biotechnology and
agriculture:
In 1632, the legendary astronomer Galileo published the results of his celestial
observations confirming the Copernican theory of the solar system. Galileo’s
discovery, which we celebrate today as one of the great achievements of science,
shook contemporary thinking and challenged accepted cultural norms. Jailed and
threatened with torture, Galileo was forced to retract the truth of his
findings.
In 1689, Marcello Malphigi, the father of comparative anatomy, used an early
microscope to discover capillaries and confirm William Harvey’s theory of the
circulatory system. Like Galileo, Malphigi was seen as undermining accepted
notions of man’s nature and, therefore, of the contemporary moral order. He
was indicted and tried by an eclessiastical court.
I recount these historical incidents merely to make the point that the frontiers
of science and technology can be rancorous and inhospitable territory. Society
does not always embrace new science, especially where it challenges
conventionally-held views. Broad public acceptance of novel technology requires
public understanding of the technology itself and, often, an awakening to, and
eagerness for, its benefits.
Monsanto vows
not to develop "terminator" gene
Monday October 4, 1999 2:33 pm Eastern Time
CHICAGO, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Monsanto Co. (NYSE:MTC - news), whose genetically
modified seeds have raised environmental and health concerns among some European
consumers, said on Monday it would not commercialize the controversial
``terminator'' gene technology which sterilizes seeds.
 Monarchs and Bt
corn: questions and answers
6/14/99
by Marlin Rice, Extension Entomologist,
Department of Entomology, Iowa State University
A study from Cornell University in New York was recently published in the
science journal Nature and suggests that pollen from Bt corn may have toxic
effects on larvae of the monarch butterfly. The caterpillar, or larval stage, of
this insect feeds on milkweed. Because some milkweed grows next to corn in the
Midwest, there is the potential that Bt corn pollen may drift onto milkweed and
affect monarch larvae. The Cornell study has generated a tremendous amount of
coverage in the national media because of the potential clash between
biotechnology and wildlife. This ICM article answers several questions related
to Bt corn and its impact on monarchs.
Toxic pollen from
widely planted, genetically modified corn can kill monarch butterflies, Cornell study
shows
Cornell University News
WEDNESDAY, MAY 19, 1999, 2 P.M., EDT
ITHACA, N.Y. -- An increasingly popular commercial corn, genetically engineered to
produce a bacterial toxin to protect against corn pests, has an unwanted side effect: Its
pollen kills monarch butterfly larvae in laboratory tests, according to a report by
Cornell University researchers.
How
the Terminator Terminates:
Martha Crouch, Indiana University.
An explanation for the non-scientist of a remarkable patent for killing second generation
seeds of crop plants.
BIOTECHNOLOGY
CAN HELP FEED AN INCREASING WORLD POPULATION
FAO, COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, Fifteenth Session, Rome, 25-29 January 1999
Agriculture is expected to feed an increasing human population, forecast to
reach 8,000 million by 2020, of whom 6,700 million will be in the developing
countries. Although the rate of population growth is steadily decreasing, the
increase in absolute numbers of people to be fed may be such that the carrying
capacity of agricultural lands could soon be reached given current technology.
New technologies, such as biotechnologies, if properly focused, offer a
responsible way to enhance agricultural productivity for now and the future.
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