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| For those who have used alfalfa in the rose garden -- here is something new and disturbing. Jeri |
Here is a link that might be useful: Article On GMO Alfalfa
Follow-Up Postings:
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| "Just two weeks before the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) fully deregulated Monsanto's Roundup Ready alfalfa," It is very sad how Monsanto has complete control over the US Dpt. of agriculture. The supreme court will hear a case involving a farmer who saved second generation corn seed. Evidently, Monsanto detected some of their own genetic material in those seeds and is going to whack all farmers with a big stick until Monsanto is the only source of seeds. The supreme court will undoubtedly side with Monsanto with Scalia mounting the charge. When Monsanto wants something there is no standing in its way and definitely not the supreme court. |
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| And, most assuredly, not the health and welfare of the citizenry. :-( Friends who have livestock are already speculating on the availability of non-monsanto alfalfa, and some are even speculating on how much they could grow. Jeri |
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| I wonder when organic growers will file suit against Monsanto because their GMO pollen 'contaminated' their organic fields? One of the oldest, longest, most publicized Monsanto cases is against Schmeiser (linked below). Whether GMO crops are potential disasters or not, it SHOULD be Monsanto's (and any other producer's) responsibility to prevent cross contamination into other growers' crops. Kim |
Here is a link that might be useful: Monsanto v. Schmeiser
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- Posted by lagomorphmom z10Coastal and z8Mtn (My Page) on Thu, Feb 21, 13 at 20:25
| Kim, I agree. On the OP, I'm not so hot on the GMO alfalfa; however, the problem with the farmer was a patent issue. He bought a bag of mixed corn seed, grew it up, sprayed with RoundUp, harvested seeds, and repeated with the purpose of growing the GMA seed on his own, thereby using the GMA genes Monsanto had patented. We're pretty strict followers of not replicating patented roses, so the idea is the same whether we like Monsanto or not. |
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- Posted by malcolm_manners 9b C. Fla. (My Page) on Thu, Feb 21, 13 at 21:08
| While there may be very legitimate concerns about some GMO crops, I can find no valid reason to believe this one -- Dr. Huber appears to be some sort of a nut case, not providing ANY evidence for his claims, and with a history of disagreeing with hard science in the past, apparently always without corroborating evidence. The concept of a "mysterious" pathogen, and that it is a "microfungus" in the size range of a virus, yells "CRAZY!" very loudly to me when I read it. |
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- Posted by kittymoonbeam 10 (My Page) on Thu, Feb 21, 13 at 21:12
| Agree with Kim |
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| Well, I didn't want to wade into this but, having read the articles, it all seems very "anecdotal". My thinking is along the lines of Dr. Manners: Dr. Huber needs to publish if he wants any credibility whatsoever. There is much we do not know and GMOs have issues, but really. ~ Debbie
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| You know, what bothers me here is less the soi dissant "Microfungus," and MORE the fact that the resulting alfalfa has been treated with Roundup. I don't want that in my garden, and I wouldn't want to feed it to my animals. Jeri |
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| There is a big difference between patenting a rose and patenting a gene. The rose is a unique collection of genes, just as a book is a unique collection of words. Patenting a gene is like coming up with your own new word, and anyone who uses that word in any unique combination would thus have to pay a royalty -- or otherwise be accused of "stealing." But the thing is, the patented genes themselves weren't usually created -- they were discovered elsewhere, then removed and transplanted into a new organism. Offering patent protection for the gene is really offering patent protection for the process of putting it there, using the gene as a proxy. But the ramifications of that must not have been fully understood when individual genes were granted patent rights. Imagine if the first Chinese gardener who discovered a reblooming rose in his garden was able to identify and patent the gene responsible for this novel trait. Then any and all roses descending from that first rose, and carrying the reblooming gene, would equally fall under his patent. I think the biggest mistake was allowing genes to be patented in organisms which reproduce by shedding pollen into the wind. In effect, it's like an owner of a prize stud horse which keeps breaking out of his paddock and impregnating the neighbors' mares, who then has the gall to demand stud fees from the mares' owners. :-/ ~Christopher |
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- Posted by malcolm_manners 9b C. Fla. (My Page) on Fri, Feb 22, 13 at 9:30
| Yes, Jeri, that is the legitimate concern with RoundUp Ready crops. They can carry some glyphosate. |
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- Posted by floridarosez9 10 (My Page) on Fri, Feb 22, 13 at 9:37
| Christopher, that's a funny example, but so true. |
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| I hope that the alfalfa from Monsanto is labeled as such. The product I use is not from Monsanto so I hope it's just plain old alfalfa. But who can say what's included in any product any more? Ingrid |
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| Ingrid, unless the alfalfa is certified organic, you would not know if it was grown from Monsanto's "Round-up Ready" seed or not (absent a genetic test). Monsanto does not grow the crop; they only provide the seed. Even California's Proposition 37 (defeated last election), which would have required that food products from GMO sources be labelled as such, exempted livestock feed. ~ Debbie |
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- Posted by henry_kuska z5 OH (kuska@neo.rr.com) on Fri, Feb 22, 13 at 13:17
| The gmo modifications utilize a virus to insert the new genes. Unfortunately, a significant fragment of the viral gene has been reported to stay in the gmo plant. The reviewed scientific paper, Podevin and du Jardin 2012, is available in full at: http://www.es.landesbioscience.com/journals/gmcrops/article/21406/?sho w_full_text=true The paper linked to in the "Here is a link that might be useful" box has 124 comments which the reader may find interesting. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Other links that may be of interest: http://healthticket.blogspot.com/2013/02/viral-gene-in-genetically-eng ineered.html http://permaculturenews.org/2013/01/28/hazardous-virus-gene-discovered -in-gm-crops-after-20-years/ http://no2gm.com/category/gm-news/ |
Here is a link that might be useful: Regulators Discover a Hidden Viral Gene in Commercial GMO Crops
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- Posted by henry_kuska z5 OH (kuska@neo.rr.com) on Fri, Feb 22, 13 at 16:28
| Dr. Don M. Huber biographical information is given below. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Dr. Don M. Huber biographical information
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| Thank you catspa for your information. Food for thought, if not for the roses. Ingrid |
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- Posted by henry_kuska z5 OH (kuska@neo.rr.com) on Wed, Feb 27, 13 at 12:40
| The following was stated: "Yes, Jeri, that is the legitimate concern with RoundUp Ready crops. They can carry some glyphosate." ----------------------------------- Why would some glyphosate in a grain be of concern? Perhaps these 2 references will help explain one of the concerns. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1075996413000188 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23224412
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