Nervously Seeking Answers

Why is it fairly unsettling to see that Dow Chemical and Monsanto are actively seeking federal approval in Canada  to allow them to proceed with the sale of corn and soybean seeds that have been genetically fortified through recombinant DNA to resist concentrations of 2,4-D and other specially designed herbicides that would repel "superweeds" on Canadian farms?

Elemental, actually.  For the very same reason that medical science has warned us that the overuse of anti-bacterial soaps and the inappropriate and excessive use of antibiotics has resulted in a surge of antibiotic resistant 'superbugs', creating a real dilemma in the field of medical research and science seeking new sources of protection from these 'superbugs' that have become immune to traditional treatments.

In the very same token, this has occurred spectacularly with the use of seeds designed to resist the use of herbicides which focus on the destruction of weeds in a farmer's fields.  Regulatory sanctions are being sought to ensure that Dow AgroSciences will be able to introduce into the Canadian marketplace, 2,4-D-tolerant "Enlist" field corn.

Monsanto plans its own launch of dicambra-tolerant soybeans in 2014, Dow to follow in 2015.  Public opinion, safe to say, appears posed to launch its own campaign to resist the introduction of these new fortified seeds.  The argument is that without efficient weed control farmers are looking at increased production costs and reduced crop yields. 

Also claimed is the prospect of returning to the labor-intensive practise of tilling fields held to promote soil erosion and pesticide run-off into waterways.  As well as an increase in fuel use.  On the other hand field corn is already imbued with limited natural tolerance to pesticides, and critics argue that introducing the genetically modified seeds will lead to widespread spraying, overspraying and contamination of untreated crops.

The thing of it is, the 1990s "Roundup revolution" did lead to widespread dependence and overuse of glyphosate.  Which led inevitably to nature's solution to a perceived imbalance, by the growth of superweeds immune to its much-vaunted properties.  Superweeds currently infest huge acreages of U.S. farmland.

"This is our No.1 issue", a national 'summit' of weed experts in Washington was advised by Arkansas crop consultant Chuck Farr.  "It is a challenge very day, every field.  The superweeds are immune to previously-used powerful herbicides." 

Southwestern Ontario has two glyphosate-resistant broadleaf weed species; Giant Ragweed and Canada Fleabane.  More recently another, Kochia appeared in Alberta.

"It's important that we don't overstate the problem, however ... we can't turn back the clock, we already have those weeds, the important thing is that growers implement strategies so that we don't (see a) third and fourth glyphosate-resistant weed in Ontario", according to Peter Sikkema, a leading expert on agricultural weed management at University of Guelph.

Opponents such as Save Our Crops Coalition of U.S. fruit and vegetable growers and canners, fear the use of 2,4-D will increase exponentially with the new Enlist.  Chemical drift and volatility could kill and injure sensitive crops from tomatoes to grapes, and poison the habitats required for pollinators.

As for consumers of these products: an estimated 25% of the food products on our supermarket shelves contain field corn-derived ingredients which appear in a vast variety of products, from bread to toothpaste, according to Agriculture Canada.