Hi Rainier,
 
>From:    "Krell, Rainer (REUS)" <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Transgenic pollen
 
>...With labeling control and controlled distribution just about becoming
>impossible where will be our rights of free choice (between transgenic food,
>organic food, pesticide or hormone etc. treated food, additives etc.) and
>for reduced rather than increased pollution.
 
I'm not against the development of transgenic organisms per se but believe
that the legislation and implementation of the technology falls far short of
what it should be.  I think labelling of transgenic produce should be
mandated to allow choices in the marketplace and that specific instructions
for deployment (such as for headland and perimeter planting only) of
transgenic plants containing pest control genes (such as corn or cotton
containing Bt proteins) should be included as legally-binding pesticide
labelling on the seed.
 
Here's a  way of combatting companies that are irresponsibly marketing
transgenic plants containing pest-control agents:
 
Grow a nons-transgenic variety of the same plant for seed in fields next to
someone who is growing a transgenic crop.  If any of the plants on your land
are pollinated by plants from the adjoining crop and prove to have picked up
the transgenic traits then you can either:
 
        * sue the neighboring grower and transgenic seed producer
          for contaminating your seed crop with "pesticide drift"
          (I would think that a strong case could be made here)
 
        * start selling the transgenic seed derived from your own lands
          undercutting the originator and bypassing all their R&D costs
          and make some cash (if transgenic seed producers are going
          to claim proprietorship on spliced-in genes then they'll
          have to take financial responsibility for making sure the
          genes don't contaminate adjoining lands where the same crop is
grown--unless labelling guidelines have been violated by whoever
          out in the crop of transgenic seed, in which case I think the
          latter would be legally responsible-- as is the case with
conventional pesticide drift-- except in this case it would
          likely be much easier to prove where the transgenic pollen came
          from until these products become more widespread.
 
Transgenic plants and other organisms can be powerful tools but at the
moment the legislation governing their use in the field and in marketable
produce seems woefully lax.
 
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