Rogue Wheat Now Found in 127 Countries!

Written by Steve Savage

“Palouse Wheat Field Sunrise” from the Charles Knowles Gallery

Rogue wheat is growing in wheat fields in 127 countries around the world! Should consumers be concerned?
Ok, I’m indulging in a poor imitation of the emotive language common in sensational writings about food issues. What I said in the paragraph above is all true, it’s just misleading because of a lack of context. After the “crisis” of glyphosate tolerant wheat being found in an Oregon field, I thought it would be useful to put that event into perspective. So…

Wheat 1.0

Wheat is largely a “saved seed crop,” meaning that farmers set aside some of the grain from each harvest to use as seed the next year. This is a practical thing for these growers to do because planting rates of wheat seed are very high (e.g. 80 or more lbs/acre) so it would be very expensive to haul bags or bins of seed very far. Also, except for a little bit in Europe, wheat is not a hybrid crop, like corn, so it is not necessary to buy new seed each year to get the highest yielding types. If a farmer plants the wheat from last year’s crop, he/she will get the same kind of wheat in the new harvest… well, mostly. Continue reading “Rogue Wheat Now Found in 127 Countries!” →

Six More Reasons To Vote No On GM Labeling Initiative

Written by Steve Savage

John Deere combine harvesting corn. — Combine harvesting corn. Image by Jay Bohnsack via Flickr.

(reposted from Science 2.0, 8/23/12)
Previously, I wrote about why GMO labeling is basically illogical. If you take the time to read the actual proposition, there are at least six more reasons that proposition 37 on the California ballot this fall is a really bad idea that voters should reject.
1. This is asking for something that is a great deal harder than it sounds.
Almost all GMO crops are commodity grains. To understand what labeling these crop ingredients means means, think of a river. When it rains, little rivulets of water begin to run off of the ground, and then combine into small creeks. These combine to make streams that eventually combine to make a river. By the time the water is in the river, it is so mixed that you could never know which drop came from where. Continue reading →

GMO Labeling And “The China Scenario”

Written by Steve Savage

When asked, “Do you want foods that contain GMOs to be labeled?” most US consumers say, “Yes.” To those unfamiliar with the food system, this sounds like a simple request. The reality is that GMO labeling would be very complicated because it involves “negative identity preservation in low value, commodity channels.” (I’ll unpack that terminology below.) The best precedent for what that would mean is what has happened with certified Organic grains and grain-based ingredients. Over time, the Organic industry has shifted towards more and more off-shore sourcing of such foods – particularly from places like China. Many of the same groups promoting GMO labeling have been also been concerned about the integrity of imported “Organic” foods. The irony is that if the GMO labeling campaign is successful, it is very likely that the “Non-GMO” segment will follow the same “China Scenario*,” and its associated risks. Continue reading “GMO Labeling And “The China Scenario”” →