Search Results for: United States

Abstract: The potential environmental risks of transgene exposure are not clear for alfalfa (Medicago sativa subsp. sativa), a perennial crop that is cross-pollinated by insects. We gathered data on feral alfalfa in major alfalfa seed-production areas in the western United States to (1) evaluate evidence that feral transgenic plants spread transgenes and (2) determine environmental …

Abstract: Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the world, being routinely applied to control weeds in both agricultural and urban settings. Microbial degradation of glyphosate produces aminomethyl phosphonic acid (AMPA). The high polarity and water-solubility of glyphosate and AMPA has, until recently, made their analysis in water samples problematic. Thus, compared to other …

Abstract: A huge increase in the incidence and prevalence of chronic diseases has been reported in the United States (US) over the last 20 years. Similar increases have been seen globally. The herbicide glyphosate was introduced in 1974 and its use is accelerating with the advent of herbicide-tolerant genetically engineered (GE) crops. Evidence is mounting …

Text: Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are not high on most physicians’ worry lists. If we think at all about biotechnology, most of us probably focus on direct threats to human health, such as prospects for converting pathogens to biologic weapons or the implications of new technologies for editing the human germline. But while those debates …

Abstract: In agriculture, the principle of coexistence refers to a condition where different primary production systems can exist in the vicinity of each other, and can be managed in such a way that they affect each other as little as possible. Coexistence policies aim to ensure that farmers are able to freely grow the crops …

Abstract: Seed saving is a historical cultural phenomenon that dates back to the beginning of agriculture itself. Seeds, because of their unique characteristics – the seed contains within itself the means for its own reproduction – have offered a particularly large stumbling block to capital accumulation. In the US, intellectual property rights legislation and Supreme …

Abstract: The U.S. Geological Survey conducted a number of studies from 2001 through 2006 to investigate and document the occurrence, fate, and transport of glyphosate, its degradation product, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), and glufosinate in 2,135 ground- and surface-water samples, 14 rainfall samples, and 193 soil samples. Analytical methods were developed to detect and measure glyphosate, …

Text: The commercial cultivation of genetically modified (GM) crops has become big business. Such crops offer the potential benefits of higher yields and lower agrochemical usage, but they may also harm agriculture, the environment, and human health. Governments around the world are attempting to fashion regulatory policies to maximize the benefits and minimize the risks …

Abstract: Chlorophenoxy herbicides are widely used in the United States and Western Europe for broadleaf weed control in grain farming and park maintenance. Most of the spring and durum wheat produced in the United States is grown in Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota, with more than 85% of the acreage treated with chlorophenoxy …

Abstract: Many researchers have hailed transgenic insecticidal crops—plants modified to produce insecticidal proteins derived from genes of the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)—as the most important technological advancement in insect pest management since the development of synthetic insecticides (Vaeck et al. 1987, Koziel et al. 1993, Perlak et al. 1990, 1993). At least 18 transgenic insecticidal …

Abstract: A survey of farmers from six U.S. states (Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Mississippi, and North Carolina) was conducted to assess the farmers’ views on glyphosate-resistant (GR) weeds and tactics used to prevent or manage GR weed populations in genetically engineered (GE) GR crops. Only 30% of farmers thought GR weeds were a serious issue. …

Abstract: This article documents the early warning signs of health and environmental dangers of DDT, vinyl chloride, and leaded gasoline. In each case, industry scientists and/or public health officials warned of potential hazards but their advice was ignored at great cost to human health and the environment. Now, genetically engineered (GE) foods have been introduced …

Abstract: Maize production in the United States is dominated by plants genetically modified with transgenes from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). Cry3Bb delta endotoxins expressed by Bt maize specifically target corn rootworms (genus Diabrotica) and have proven highly efficacious. However, development of resistance to Bt maize, especially among western corn rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera) populations, poses a …

Abstract: The US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) 1992 policy statement was developed in the context of critical gaps in scientific knowledge concerning the compositional effects of genetic transformation and severe limitations in methods for safety testing. FDA acknowledged that pleiotropy and insertional mu‐tagenesis may cause unintended changes, but it was unknown whether this happens …

Abstract: Bt crops are one of the most commonly used genetically modified crops worldwide. Bt crops contain a gene that is derived from the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis, which produces the Cry1Ab toxin. Bt corn that contains the Cry1Ab toxin is used throughout the Midwest United States to control crop pests such as the European corn …

Text: Since they were first commercially grown in the mid-1990s, genetically engineered (GE) crops have expanded across the globe, offering farmers the advantages of genetically enhanced resistance to drought, herbicides, and insects. According to the International Service for the Acquisition of AgriBiotech Applications (ISAAA), a crop biotechnology advocacy organization, farmers in 29 countries grew nearly …

Abstract: BACKGROUND. Glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine] is a herbicide used widely throughout the world in the production of many crops and is heavily used on soybeans, corn and cotton. Glyphosate is used in almost all agricultural areas of the United States, and the agricultural use of glyphosate has increased from less than 10 000 Mg in 1992 …