The World According to Monsanto // Dr. Leo Rebello forward

[Guest guest]



 

 

 

Movie about problems and contamination of food... read this slowly..

 

----The World According to MonsantoFilm Review: The World According to MonsantoDirected by Marie-Monique RobinReviewed by Jeffrey M. SmithDistributed by Yes! Books, www.MonsantoFilm.com, $19.95Includes bonus film and audio CD.How much outrage can a single multinational corporation inspire?

How much damage can they inflict? The breathtaking new film, The WorldAccording to Monsanto, features a company that sets the new standard.From Iowa to Paraguay, from England to India, Monsanto is uprootingour food supply and replacing it with their patented geneticallyengineered creations. And along the way, farmers, communities, andnature become collateral damage.The Gazette says the movie "will freeze the blood in your veins." TheHour says it's a "horrifying enough picture" to warrant "fury." Butmost importantly, this critical film opens our eyes just in time.The film is the work of celebrated award-winning French filmmakerMarie-Monique Robin, whose three years of work on four continentsexposes why Monsanto has become the world's poster child for malignantcorporate influence in government and technology. Combining secretdocuments with accounts by victims, scientists and policy makers, sheguides us through a web of misleading reports, pressure tactics,collusion, and attempted corruption. And we learn how the companysystematically tricked governments into allowing dangerous geneticallymodified (GM) foods into our diet—with Monsanto in charge ofdetermining if they're safe.Deception, Deception, DeceptionThe company's history with some of the most toxic chemicals everproduced, illustrates why they can't be trusted. Ask the folks ofAnniston, Alabama, where Monsanto's PCB factory secretly poisoned theneighborhood for decades. PCBs are Monsanto's toxic oils used ascoolants and lubricants for over 50 years and are now virtuallyomnipresent in the blood and tissues of humans and wildlife around theglobe. But Anniston residents have levels hundreds or thousands oftimes the average. They all know their levels, which they carry asdeath sentences. David Baker, who lost his little brother and most ofhis friends to PCB-related diseases such as cancer, says Anniston kidsused to run up to him, report their PCB level and ask, "How long youthink I got?"Ken Cook of the Environmental Working Group says that based onMonsanto documents made public during a trial, the company "knew thetruth from the very beginning. They lied about it. They hid the truthfrom their neighbors." One Monsanto memo explains their justification:"We can't afford to lose one dollar of business."Monsanto also produced the infamous Agent Orange, the cancer andbirth-defect causing defoliant sprayed over Vietnam. It contaminatedmore than 3 million civilians and servicemen. But according to WilliamSanjour, who led the Toxic Waste Division of the EnvironmentalProtection Agency, "thousands of veterans were disallowed benefits"because "Monsanto studies showed that dioxin [the main ingredient inAgent Orange] was not a human carcinogen." But his EPA colleaguediscovered that Monsanto had allegedly falsified the data in theirstudies. Sanjour says, "If they were done correctly, [the studies]would have reached just the opposite result."Secret documents stolen from the FDA also reveal serious healtheffects from Monsanto's genetically engineered bovine growth hormone,called rBGH or rBST. In particular, the amount of a powerful hormonecalled IGF-1 is substantially increased in milk from treated cows.Samuel Epstein, Chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition, says thatapproximately 60 studies link IGF-1 to "breast, colon, and prostatecancers."Cancer is also implicated in Monsanto's showcase herbicide, Roundup.According to Professor Robert Bellé's research showing disrupted celldivision, "Roundup provokes the first stages that lead to cancer."Bellé, who is with the National Center for Scientific Research and thePierre and Marie Curie Institute in France, says, "The tested doseswere well below those which people normally use."Monsanto has promoted Roundup as harmless to both humans and theenvironment. But their advertised environmental claims, such as"biodegradable,leaves the soil clean," and "respects theenvironment," were declared false and illegal by judges in both the USand France. In fact, Monsanto's own studies showed that 28 days afterapplication, only 2% of the product had broken down. They were forcedto remove "biodegradable" from the label.Above the lawWhen Monsanto's transgressions are reported to authorities, somehowthe company is magically let off the hook.When Monsanto finally did share information on PCBs with thegovernment, for example, Ken Cook says "instead of siding with thepeople who were being poisoned, [the government] sided with thecompany. . . . It was outrageous!" When William Sanjour's EPAcolleague, Cate Jenkins, asked the agency to review Monsanto's flawedAgent Orange studies, Sanjour says, "there was no investigation ofMonsanto. . . . What they investigated was Cate Jenkins, thewhistleblower! They made her life a hell."When Richard Burroughs of the FDA held up approval of rBGH bydemanding more rigorous and relevant testing, he was fired. He says,"They figured: 'Well, if you're in the way, we'll get you out of theway.'. . . One day, I was escorted to the door and told that was it; Iwas done." Senior government scientists at Health Canada testifiedthat their superiors were pressuring them to approve rBGH and thatMonsanto had offered them an alleged bribe of $1-2 million. Thescientists were later reprimanded, punished, and eventually "dismissedfor disobedience." rBGH was never approved in Canada, Europe,

and most industrialized nations.When Professor Bellé went to his administration "to let the publicknow about the dangers" of Roundup herbicide, he was "ordered" not tocommunicate his findings "due to the GMO question lurking in thebackground." That question about genetically modified organisms was inrelation to Monsanto's "Roundup Ready" crops. Monsanto has the patentfor 90% of the GMOs grown on the planet, and most of them aregenetically modified specifically to tolerate applications of Roundup.Corporate Coup d'étatMonsanto's past manipulations were mere warm ups compared to thevirtual government takeover used to approve GM foods. Author JeremyRifkin, President of the Foundation for Economic Trends, says, "I havenever seen a situation where one company could have so muchoverwhelming influence at the highest levels of regulatory decisionmaking."

The problem Monsanto faced was that GMOs are inherently unsafe.

They can create dangerous side effects. That was the overwhelming consensusby FDA scientists, according to 44,000 agency documents made publicfrom a lawsuit. But the most important document, FDA's officialpolicy, claimed that GMOs were not substantially different. They weregranted the status "Generally Recognized as Safe," even though theyfailed to meet the normal criteria. Thus, no safety testing is necessary.

If Monsanto declares their GM products safe, the FDA has nofurther questions.Former FDA biotech coordinator James Maryanski admits on camera thatthe GMO policy "was a political decision," not scientific. In fact,FDA political appointee Michael Taylor was in charge of the policy.Taylor was formerly Monsanto's attorney and later their vice president.Monsanto's people regularly infiltrate upper echelons of government,and the company offers prominent positions to officials when theyleave public service. This revolving door has included key people inthe White House, regulatory agencies, even the Supreme Court. Monsantoalso had George Bush Senior on their side, as evidenced by footage ofVice President Bush at Monsanto's facility offering help to get theirproducts through government bureaucracy. He says, "Call me. We're inthe 'de-reg' business. Maybe we can help."Monsanto's influence continued into the Clinton administration. DanGlickman, then Secretary of Agriculture, says, "there was a generalfeeling in agro-business and inside our government in the US that ifyou weren't marching lock-step forward in favor of rapid approvals ofbiotech products, rapid approvals of GMO crops, then somehow, you wereanti-science and anti-progress." He admits, "when I opened my mouth inthe Clinton Administration [about the lax regulations on GMOs], I gotslapped around a little bit."

Unlike Glickman, FDA's Maryanski tries in vain to convince filmmakerRobin that GMOs are safe and that US regulation is adequate. But Robinhad conducted four months of intensive internet research examiningdeclassified documents, leaked internal files, scientific studies,trial transcripts, articles, and first hand accounts ofwhistleblowers. She was prepared.In a priceless sequence, the film alternates between Maryanski'sassurances and public interest attorney Steven Druker reading formerlysecret memos by agency scientists, describing the serious healthdamage that GMOs may cause. When Robin repeats these same quotes toMaryanski, he resorts to uncomfortable stuttering, stammering, andbacktracking. When he ultimately tries to dismiss genetic engineeringas completely safe, Robin nails him. She reads to Maryanski his ownwords from a 1991 memo in which he acknowledged that geneticengineering of a food supplement called L-tryptophan in the 1980s mayhave been responsible for a deadly epidemic that killed dozens andcaused thousands to fall sick or become disabled.Suppressing evidence of harm, attacking GMO scientistsWhen Monsanto's GM crops hit American farm fields in 1996, virtuallyno safety studies had been published. The pro-GM UK government decidedto commission Dr. Arpad Pusztai, the world's leading scientist in hisfield, to design rigorous safety testing protocols that would convincea skeptical public to embrace GM foods. When Pusztai fed GM potatoesto rats, however, they developed potentially pre-cancerous cellgrowth, a damaged immune system, and inhibited growth of major organs.Moreover, Pusztai's work implicated the generic process of geneticengineering itself as the cause. That is, any GM food already on themarket might create the same problems in humans.When Pusztai went public with his concerns, he was praised for his"wonderful work" by his director at the prestigious Rowett Institute.But according to a colleague, "two phone calls from Downing Street[the home of UK Prime Minister Tony Blair] to the director" resultedin Pusztai's sudden dismissal after 35 years. His protocols wereshelved and he was the target of a relentless smear campaign, designedto destroy his reputation while promoting that of GMOs.UC Berkeley Professor Ignacio Chapela was also targeted after hepublished evidence that GM corn had cross-pollinated with indigenousMexican varieties, forever contaminating "the world's geneticreservoir of corn." Just after his research was published in Nature,Mary Murphy and Andura Smetacek began posting false accusations on abiotech forum website, recruiting scientists to inundate thepublication with demands to retract the study. When anti-GMOcampaigner Jonathan Matthews analyzed the technical headers on thetwo's emails, he traced Smetacek to a Monsanto computer, and Murphy totheir PR firm. The two were apparently fictitious characters createdto stir things up. Matthews says, "There's no ethics at all in what'sgoing on here. It shows an organization that is determined to push itsproducts into countries around the world and it's determined todestroy the reputation of anybody who stands in their way."Monster corn and contamination by designThe film explores an ominous new development in Mexico that has yet tobe reported in the scientific literature. Mutated and bizarrely shapedcorn plants have been found "along the roadside or in people's yards"or fields. Community organizer Aldo Gonzales says, "They are reallymonsters!" And whenever analyzed, the monsters turn out to begenetically engineered. Local scientists believe that when GM corncross-pollinates with traditional varieties, some genetic effectdisturbs the offspring.One Mexican farmer realized the implications. "If we don't manage tostop their spread in our fields, soon we'll be forced to buy our cornseed because our own won't work anymore?" Gonzales wonders if thecontamination was intentional. He says, "Contamination only benefitsmultinationals like Monsanto."Intentional contamination of another sort appears to have happened inParaguay, as illegal Roundup Ready seeds were smuggled in before GMOswere approved. Roberto Franco, Paraguay's Deputy Agriculture Ministry,tactfully admits, "It is possible that [Monsanto], let's say, promotedits varieties and its seeds" before they were approved. "We had toauthorize GMO seeds because they had already entered our country inan, let's say, unorthodox way."Once approved, large agribusinesses bought huge tracts and cut downthe rainforest to plant vast Roundup Ready soybean fields. The GMOsallow them to spray by plane or mechanical spreader; to farm withoutfarmers. Peasants who had worked the land for generations are forcedout—100,000 each year leave rural areas to live in the shanty towns ofthe cities. In one small farm community that is holding out next to asoy field, sprayed Roundup kills their livestock and crops, andsickens their children.Destroying farmersUS family farmers also feel the heat. Troy Roush is one of hundredsaccused by Monsanto of illegally saving their seeds. The companyrequires farmers to sign a contract that they will not save andreplant GM seeds from their harvest. That way Monsanto can sell itsseeds—at a premium—each season.Although Roush maintains his innocence, he was forced to settle withMonsanto after two and a half years of court battles. He says his"family was just destroyed [from] the stress involved." Many farmersare afraid, according to Roush, because Monsanto has "created a littleindustry that serves no other purpose than to wreck farmers' lives."Massive farmer suicidesIn many countries where Monsanto monopolizes the seeds of certaincrops, they eliminate non-GMO choices to force farmers to buy GMvarieties. In India, for example, where Monsanto pushes theirpesticide-producing Bt cotton, "there was no non-BT hybrid seedavailable in the market," says agronomist Kiran Sakhari.Farmers had to borrow heavily to pay four times the price for the GMvarieties, along with the chemicals needed to grow them. In spite ofglowing promises of higher yields by Monsanto's ads, Bt cotton oftenperforms poorly. Tragically, tens of thousands of indebted desperatefarmers have resorted to suicide, often drinking unused pesticides. Inone region, more than three Bt cotton farmers take their own liveseach day.Replacing Nature: "Nothing Shall Be Eaten That We Don't Own"Monsanto is the world's largest seed company and many are concerned..Troy Roush says, "They are in the process of owning food, all food."Paraguayan farmer Jorge Galeano says, "Its objective is to control allof the world's food production." Renowned Indian physicist andcommunity organizer Vandana Shiva says, "If they control seed, theycontrol food; they know it, it's strategic. It's more powerful thanbombs; it's more powerful than guns. This is the best way to controlthe populations of the world."The World According to Monsanto is aptly named. It is about Monsantoseeking to recreate the world in its own image, for its own benefit.They intend to replace (and patent) the entire food supply. And sincetheir genetic pollution self-propagates in the environment, it willoutlast the effects of global warming and nuclear waste.Such widespread permanent influence may not be safe with anyindividual or company. With Monsanto's record, the results can only becatastrophic.This powerful documentary might just inspire a global rejection ofMonsanto's plans for our world. If so, it will be the most importantfilm in history. ___________________

Jeffrey M. Smith is the international bestselling author of Seeds ofDeception and Genetic Roulette, the executive director of theInstitute for Responsible Technology, and director of The Campaign forHealthier Eating in America.

The World According to Monsanto is co-produced by the National FilmBoard of Canada, ARTE France, Image & Compagnie, WDR, and LesProductions Thalie. ___________________© copyright Institute For Responsible Technology 2008Jeffrey M. Smith is the author of publication Genetic Roulette: TheDocumented Health Risks of Genetically Engineered Foods, whichpresents 65 risks in easy-to-read two-page spreads. His first book,Seeds of Deception, is the top rated and #1 selling book on GM foodsin the world. He is the Executive Director of the Institute forResponsible Technology. www.responsibletechnology.org, which isspearheading the Campaign for Healthier Eating in America. Go towww.seedsofdeception.com to learn more about how to avoid GM foods."The greatest threat of childhood diseases lies in the dangerous andineffectual efforts made to prevent them through massimmunization.....There is no convincing scientific evidence that massinoculations can be credited with eliminating any childhooddisease." --Dr Robert Mendelsohn, M.D.-- Jogeshmeine mana janaab peeta hoon,bakhuda behisaab peeta hoon,log logon ka khoon peetay hain,mein toh phir bhi sharaab peeta hoon. - Amir Khusrau