Western Corn Rootworm
Superweeds are not the only catastrophe resulting from the biotech industry’s drive to flood our fields with chemicals and GM crops. There is scientific evidence that the western corn rootworm, a major pest of corn monoculture, has
developed resistance to Bt corn. Of course,
Monsanto denies this.
Bt corn is genetically engineered to emit a toxin of
Bacillus thuringiensis (a microorganism commonly used for biological pest control). This Monsanto product now makes up 65 percent of the corn planted in the U.S.
Maternal and fetal exposure to Bt toxin has been documented, and the presence of this toxin in so much of our processed food may be contributing to rising cases of gastrointestinal and autoimmune problems.
The biotech industry spends millions every year lobbying Congress to protect its ironclad grip on the agricultural industry. Apparently it has equal sway with the EPA. A majority of independent science advisers told the EPA that farmers should use 50% of their cropland for a “refuge” to suppress the emergence of Bt resistant pests. But the biotech industry
managed to convince EPA to set only a 20% refuge requirement.
A “refuge” is an area planted with non-Bt crops which provides a supply of insects that remain susceptible to Bt. Insects from the refuge will breed with insects from the Bt fields and produce non-resistant offspring, thus reducing the emergence of resistant populations.
But Monsanto is only concerned with profits and successfully convinced EPA to dramatically reduce the refuge requirements, so 30% more field space can be planted with their product. This has likely contributed to the emergence of Bt-resistant pests.
Of course, Monsanto has a plan. They have developed a
newer GM corn with two strains of Bt toxin plus the RoundUp Ready gene. Now we can have not one but two Bt toxins in our blood and rest assured that the corn has been drenched with glyphosate as well!
Superweeds and superbugs are two of the ways in which GM foods are taking our agricultural system into a downward spiral. Evolutionary arms races between plants and animals have been going on for all of life’s history, but the biotech industry is giving enormous advantage to crop pests and weeds.
The preeminence of herbicide-resistant and toxin-emitting crops also means that alternative methods of Integrated Pest Management, such as crop rotation that significantly reduces pest outbreaks, are virtually ignored by the industry.
In the face of this we must practice our own sound pest management strategies and spread the word to farmers who may be dazzled by Monsanto propaganda. Scientific research will keep exposing the biotech industry’s false claims that they own the path to sustainability.
By Justin Gardener, REALfarmacy.com
