How can we preserve the integrity and diversity of our genetic resources from new GMOs? Lawyer Blanche Magarinos-Rey, GMWatch's Claire Robinson, and scientist Prof Michael Antoniou are leading a workshop on the EU Commission's proposal to deregulate new GMOs and its implications for farmers, consumers, and the seed sector. It's on 27 October at Trinity College Dublin, as part of the Let's Liberate Diversity! forum, 26–28 October. See the full programme and register here. Let's Liberate Diversity!

 

 

M. S. Swaminathan, widely regarded as the father of the Green Revolution in India, recently died at the age of 98. An agronomist, agricultural scientist and plant geneticist, Swaminathan played a key role in introducing hybrid high yielding varieties of wheat and rice to India and in encouraging farmers to adopt high-input, chemical-dependent practices. The mainstream narrative is that Swaminathan’s collaborative scientific efforts with Norman Borlaug helped save India from famine in the 1960s. However, there is another side to the story of the Green Revolution, which seldom emerges in the mainstream, writes Colin Todhunter. Farmer Bhaskar Save wrote an open letter to Swaminathan accusing him of flinging open “the floodgates of toxic ‘agro’ chemicals – ravaging the lands and lives of many millions of Indian farmers over the past 50 years.” Save added, “More than any other individual in our long history, it is you I hold responsible for the tragic condition of our soils and our debt-burdened farmers, driven to suicide in increasing numbers every year.” Interestingly, Swaminathan came out against GMOs in India, questioning their efficacy. GMWatch

 

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