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Efforts to ban genetically engineered crops spreading in California
(Wednesday, March 31, 2004 -- CropChoice news) -- Greg Lucas, Sacramento Bee, 03/30/04: Following Mendocino's lead, bans on genetically modified
crops are being considered in nearly one-fifth of California's 58
counties, supporters say.
Mendocino's Measure H -- approved March 2 by 57 percent of voters despite
a record-shattering $700,000 campaign against it by the biotech industry
-- is the first voter-sanctioned ban on bioengineered crops in the
country.
That success has fueled interest in similar initiatives from Humboldt to
Santa Barbara. Humboldt activists are already gathering signatures.
Similar efforts are beginning in Sonoma and Butte counties. And campaigns
are being looked at for Marin, Contra Costa, Solano, San Luis Obispo,
Santa Barbara and Placer counties, sources say.
"Our strategy is to win a ban and do so by bringing together a broad
alliance of growers and businesses and environmentalists and city
governments and health professionals," David Henson, executive director of
the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, said of the Sonoma effort.
Makers of genetically altered crops like Monsanto and Dupont have yet to
settle on a strategy to stop the local bans. "We're looking at a number of
things to remedy the situation," said Allan Noe, a spokesman for Croplife
America, a national trade association for companies manufacturing
genetically altered crops.
Noe said among the options being weighed are a court challenge to
Mendocino's ban, an attempt to pass state legislation to prevent counties
passing such bans or persuade the federal government, which regulates
biotech products, to halt local bans.
Biotech crops are mainly of two varieties -- they're engineered to either
kill bugs or to withstand pesticides like Monsanto's Roundup. The bulk of
the market is altered soy, canola, corn and cotton.
Manufacturers of the crops oppose local bans, arguing that extensive
federal regulation ensures the safety of genetically altered foodstuffs.
Use of such crops also saves farmers money and helps the environment by
reducing the use of pesticides, the industry says.
But opponents contend the technology is too new to be proven safe and that
cross-pollination between gene-altered crops and nearby organic crops
could severely harm the organic food industry.
One of the arguments used by supporters of Mendocino County's measure was
that certifying a product grown in the county as being free from genetic
engineering would make it more salable, particularly in the Japanese and
European markets, which for the most part oppose genetically altered
foodstuffs.
Although no genetically altered crops are grown in Mendocino County,
Croplife and a comparable statewide trade group contributed nearly all the
money used to try to defeat Mendocino's anti-genetic engineering Measure
H, which ultimately won with 57 percent of the more than 27,000 votes
cast.
Els Cooperrider, co-owner of the Ukiah Brewing Co. and one of the leaders
of the Measure H campaign, said initiatives are under consideration for 11
counties, based on her conversations with people who have called her
seeking advice. She declined to name the counties.
"The reason I'm not saying anything right now is because they asked me not
to. They're worried Monsanto forces will come in and undo them before they
get going," Cooperrider said. "But I know who they are and I know they're
working on it."
Other sources say activists are considering launching initiatives in
Marin, Contra Costa, Solano, San Luis Obispo and Placer counties.
While Cooperrider isn't saying who is working on more local bans, she and
her campaign brain trust are exporting their winning strategy. "We didn't
run a top-down organization," Cooperrider said. "There was freedom for
people to do what they thought was best to bring votes in their
communities."
A Butte County group -- Genetically Engineered Free Butte County -- is
also just beginning its efforts. "We need 6,000 signatures by May 13,"
said Mark Bracket, an Oroville construction worker backing a ban because
of his belief genetically modified organisms aren't safe.
Farthest along is Humboldt County's effort, championed by the Humboldt
Green Genes. Using the slogan, "We're mad as cows and we're not going to
take it any more," the group has collected more than 2,000 signatures of
the 4,500 needed by July 7 to place the measure on the November ballot.
"I do see genetic modification as a direct threat to organic farming.
Cross-pollination happens. It's a fact," said Angela Flynn, a Green Gene
who does piece work on area organic farms.
The first commercial genetically altered crops were sold in 1996. Since
then, their use has grown sharply. In 1996, genetically engineered corn
represented 4 percent of the acres planted. Last year, it was 40 percent.
More than 70 percent of canola and cotton crops are genetically
engineered. For soy, it's more than 80 percent.
Although most use is concentrated in the Midwest and the South,
California's genetically altered crop count is increasing. Biotech crops
in California are mainly cotton and corn. Their principal growing areas
are the Central and Imperial valleys.
In 1999, 2 percent of the cotton grown in California was pesticide
resistant. In 2003, that had grown to 29 percent. Insect-resistant corn is
about 6 percent of California's crop, according to Croplife America. | |
