Monsanto’s Genetically Modified Corn Succumbs to Pests

 

 

 
Monsanto, the 10th most innovative company, according to Forbes Magazine(2012), has engineered genetically modified corn, which is supposed to withstand and survive the attack of pests, but is reportedly succumbing to rootworms/beetles. It has been claimed for a long time by Monsanto that their GM seeds are resistant to such dangers but Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) says that there are a lot of farmers who are reporting the onset of root worms in their corn plants in spite of using Monsanto’s GM seeds.

 

http://www.motherearthnews.com/sustainable-farming/gmo-corn-failing-zwfz1208zhun.aspx

Pest expert Bruce Potter of University of Minnesota, in an interview with MPR, said that they were not going to make this go away and that they were stuck with managing this problem. Potter himself has witnessed the damage inflicted by the rootworms in southern and western Minnesota. The rootworms are attacking the roots thus weakening the plants and as a result, they are getting toppled quite easily with even a minor breeze. What is most pathetic is the helplessness of the farmers. Potter opined that instead of making things easier, we just made corn rootworm management harder and a heck of a lot more expensive. These are the words that are ringing throughout the corn farming community. The only way they have left to get rid of this problem is to deprive the insects of their food (i.e. to start cultivating some other crop). But many are reluctant to start a new venture fearing further loss.

 

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has received reports from several states about the problem but none of them are decisive enough to make Monsanto accept the incompetence of their GM seeds. People who advocate for sustainable agriculture such as Wes Jackson and Michael Pollan have always maintained that biotechnology and chemical-based agriculture, as practiced today, give the farmers a false sense of security.

 

http://buzz.naturalnews.com/000553-GMO-genetically_modified-GM_corn.html

 

It is tragic that the seed which was supposed to usher a revolution in the field of agriculture has failed so badly. Now it is to see what the farmers do, whether they shift to some other crop depriving the pests of their food, or they stick to the corn seeds spending more and more money for other better quality seeds and pesticides.