Aventis, the manufacturer of StarLink corn, is being slapped with a series of class-action lawsuits by farmers across the USA. Farmers are seeking compensation for financial damage from cross pollination and co-mingling of the unapproved corn with regular varieties.

StarLink, which was approved for animal use only, found its way into the human food supply.

Food industry consultants say that StarLink will cost the food industry billions of dollars and has thrown the future of genetically modified foods into doubt.

Nematodes Infest Biotech Cotton

Research recently published in the Journal of Cotton Science shows that biotech cotton is more susceptible to the root-knot nematode, a widespread and serious insect pest of cotton. In the past, cotton was bred to be resistant to the pest. However, biotech varieties show increased infestation and nematode damage. This finding highlights the potential for weakened traits in genetic varieties due to the unpredictable side-effects of genetic manipulation.

Genetically Modified Superweeds Spreading

Genetically modified "super-weeds" have invaded Canadian farms. Herbicide resistant biotech canola plants have escaped and cross-bred with each other to form plants stronger than their parents.

These plants, which can't be killed by most pesticides, are sprouting up in wheat fields and other areas where farmers don't want them. The super-weed canola is especially bad in the Prairies. Farmers are having to resort to more powerful pesticides - the very chemicals the engineered plants were designed to render obsolete.

Biotech Rice Fraud

Genetically engineered "golden rice" that produced vitamin A was promoted by the biotech industry as a solution to blindness in the third world. However, it has now been shown that the rice could only generate a small fraction of the vitamin A initially promised, making the initial claims and benefits unrealizable.

Biotech Weaklings

Researchers at Imperial College in London, England found that biotech crops are much less hardy than traditional varieties. The team studied biotech canola, corn, sugar beet and potatoes over 10 years. They showed that, when untended by people, all four of the crops tended to curl up and die. Of the 48 plots planted with these crops, 47 went extinct within four years. The study was published in Nature.
Quote:

"If you look at the simple principle of genetic modification it spells ecological disaster. There are no ways of quantifying the risks.... The solution is simply to ban the use of genetic modification in food." -Dr Harash Narang, microbiologist and senior research associate at the University of Leeds, who originally caused a scientific and political storm by claiming a link between mad cow disease and CJD in humans.

Alive: Canadian Journal of Health and Nutrition June 2001