If Biotech Has Nothing To Hide ...

In theory, biotech crops are safe. It says so on the label and in the press releases.

Though the unfortunate truth is that no one knows because there's been inadequate research:

... The problem, the scientists say, is that farmers and other buyers of genetically engineered seeds have to sign an agreement meant to ensure that growers honor company patent rights and environmental regulations. But the agreements also prohibit growing the crops for research purposes.

So while university scientists can freely buy pesticides or conventional seeds for their research, they cannot do that with genetically engineered seeds. Instead, they must seek permission from the seed companies. And sometimes that permission is denied or the company insists on reviewing any findings before they can be published, they say.

... The growers’ agreement from Syngenta not only prohibits research in general but specifically says a seed buyer cannot compare Syngenta’s product with any rival crop. ...

In other words, as the article goes on to point out, not even scientists who support crop gene technology can research best growing practices in order to offer farmers independent advice on how to improve yields through methodology.

This means that no results touted by the biotech companies can be verified. It means product claims can't be tested, safety can't be tested, environmental impact can't be tested.

While the seed companies insist they can be trusted, their technology has already contaminated the seed supply and strains approved only for research keep making it into crops grown for food.

And the corn industry, with corn being one of the most tightly controlled biotech crops, doesn't even want the presence of mercury in high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) tested. Mercury. A substance known to be unsafe in any amount. These are the people whose mentality governs what research gets performed and released about their products.

The biotech revolution has paralleled the consolidation of the seed industry and a rush to extinction for tens of thousands of crop varieties.

We're being driven into a future from which there's no turning back, without any independent verification that it will be as promised on the label. And the biotech companies just keep hitting the gas pedal.

(Photo series: James Tan Chin Choy on Flickr.)