Environmental fears
In the article I referenced in my previous post, the US is critized for:
- Dumping subsidized maize on the mexican market, making it economically unfeasable for Mexican farmers to grow their own maize since it’s cheaper to buy it in the stores. This is described as a neo-liberal shift but of course it isn’t since no neo-liberal/libertarian would endorse subsidizing agricultural overproduction.
- Selling genetically modified maize to the Mexicans against their will. Some Mexican farmers have been planting this maize (which was originally intended to be eaten) and there is widespread fear that this will be detrimental to the local varieties of maize, some of which are traditional and have been used for a very long time. The fear is mainly that the transgenes will somehow “take over” the local varieties and that the spread of transgenes will have a major impact on the biodiversity of maize. Read this article to balance this view; it’s conclusion is that due to the properties of maize there is very little risk that a few transgenes will affect the genetic (and therefore the bio-) diversity of maize. There is no mention of the effects of putative evolutionary pressure but it is still nice to read something non-hysterical about a GMO.
While you’re into science, check out this interesting article at Reason. I haven’t had time to view all the references yet but at least it is a change from all the doomsday prophecies that are so prevalent these days and from the look of it, it has a scientific foundation.
