The draft report of the rapporteur of the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety is completely unacceptable, says ENGA (the European Non-GMO Industry Association), given its removal of the already negligible nods to transparency for EU citizens in the European Commission’s proposal on new GM techniques ("New Genomic Techniques", "NGTs"). ENGA says, "The EP rapporteur’s draft report removes the only transparency requirement proposed by the European Commission for category 1 NGTs (about 94% of all New GMOs): the need to label seeds as NGTs. This means that the whole food production chain, starting with breeders and farmers, as well as food and feed processors, retailers and consumers, will be kept in the dark about New GMOs on the EU market. The Biodynamic Federation Demeter International, representing the biodynamic farming movement worldwide as part of the organic sector, also says it firmly opposes the direction taken by the rapporteur in the draft report: "The removal of the ban of category 1 NGTs in organic farming and the seed labelling provisions are our main topics of concern. We urge the European Parliament to reinstate both provisions back in the final report." GMWatch

 

 

North Indian states Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan are reporting a severe pink bollworm attack on GM Bt cotton, which is falling prey to the pest it was created to resist. However, the insect invasion is claiming more than just the crops — the losses are pushing farmers to the brink of suicide. On September 25, 2023 40-year-old Shamsher Singh from Sri Ganganagar district in Rajasthan had his afternoon meal of sabzi roti (vegetable curry and chapatis) at 3.30 pm, followed by a nap and usual tea. His family did not know this would be the last time they would see him. Singh’s family is steeped in debt, which drove him to take his own life. His brother Balwinder Singh said the farmer’s life began spiralling after his 16.24 acres of cotton fields drowned in the excess rains witnessed in the village on September 15, 2023. When Shamsher Singh visited the cultivation on September 24, he discovered that, in addition to the rain-damaged crops, the entire plantation was infested with pink bollworm (PBW). “He realised that the entire crop had been lost, and the losses would only add to his debt that had been piling up for the past three years,” the brother explained. DownToEarth India

 

 

Bayer, which profits from various environmentally harmful and disease-causing chemicals like glyphosate, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) “to develop resource-efficient, climate-resilient solutions for crops, varieties, crop protection, weed and mechanisation”, reports Colin Todhunter. The ICAR, an apex public sector institution, is responsible for co-ordinating agricultural education and research in India. Predatory corporations like Bayer attempt to co-opt government agencies that can provide access to extensive networks in order to wield influence and market products. It’s a key business strategy. And this is not lost on the Peoples’ Commission on Public Sector and Services (PCPSS), which includes eminent academics, jurists, erstwhile administrators, trade unionists and social activists. In a statement, it expressed concern that Bayer will exploit the ICAR’s vast infrastructure to pursue its own commercial plans within India. And those commercial plans are clear: to boost sales of toxic proprietary products by opening up new markets in India as sales stagnate or plummet elsewhere. Countercurrents

 

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