Miss truths about GM in WA

Mr Jim Chown,

As the Member for the Agricultural Region, I find it appalling that you are willing to blatantly tell miss truths to the West Australian community. Members of the Legislative Council who voted against the disallowance motion for GM canola are NOT supporting the views of the majority of WA grain growers. You have no proof they were.

Case in point, you seem ecstatic that less than 900 people signed the agreement with Monsanto to grow and supply GM Canola for this growing season, and somehow these people represent the majority of farmers? 27,000 signatures, 5,000 postcards, plus delegates from Japan were presented to the Liberal Government urging Colin Barnett to maintain the moratorium. Over 20 shires (many in the main farming communities) declared themselves GM free. The state has overruled these local shires, something which Terry Redman said he wouldn't do. Farmers and consumers do not want GM.

If Mr Chown had done his research he would find that, no Peer-reviewed publications of clinical studies on the human health effects of GM food exist. Even independent animal studies are few and far between.

Monsanto has withdrawn applications of 2 GM corn varieties LY038 and LY038 x MON810 from European regulators, Independent scientists in New Zealand have warned that they are not safe for humans when cooked.

FSANZ (Food Standards Australia New Zealand) has approved both varieties for food and animal feed.

French researchers published detailed statistics of 3 rat feeding trials of GM Maize NK 603, MON 810, MON 863, They concluded that all 3 cause adverse effects on organs, mainly involving the kidney and liver, but also the heart, adrenal glands, spleen and heamatopoietic system.

All 3 are approved by FSANZ for food and animal feed.

FSANZ is supposed to look after the citizens, not the biotech industry. Has FSANZ done any studies on GM Canola or GM Cotton? No they have not! FSANZ relies solely on the data provided to them from the biotech industry. Where is the rigorous testing that you refer to Mr Chown? Where are these peer reviewed studies? Which well reputed science journals are they published in?

When genetic engineers create GM crops, they do not insert the gene in a particular position. The gene ends up in a random location in the genetic material, disrupting the existing genes at that place. Also, genes do not work in isolation but interact with each other.
Unintended side-effects therefore occur and most GM plants are deformed. How is that in any way safe or "good science"? The biotech industry is very quick to call anyone against GM anti progress, anti science. We are neither of those, we just want the truth!

Please note that in nearly 20 years of GM commercial crops, NONE have been designed to increase yield, be salt, flood, drought or frost resistant by the Genetic Engineering process. These crops are only designed to drink unnatural poison or create their own unnatural poison.

Mr Chown you tell me that this is what the majority of West Australians want? Mr Terry Redman and Mr Colin Barnett have sold out West Australian farmers and consumers to the biotech industry, an industry that is unsustainable, uncontainable and yet to be proven safe.

Letter to Farm Weekly, by Josh Copeland, Mukinbudin