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It's a good perspective. My concern is mostly about biodiversity. GMOs as designed today are about monocropping and chemical dependency... they're a vendor lock
by beat 12y ago
It's a good perspective. My concern is mostly about biodiversity. GMOs as designed today are about monocropping and chemical dependency... they're a vendor lock-in scheme wrapped in productivity enhancement.
Globally, productivity isn't our big food problem. Sustainability is. But the best solution for sustainability is probably the opposite of GMO - protecting heirloom varieties and local crops, using crop rotation and low-till techniques to minimize soil damage, and thinking about farms in terms of centuries rather than years.
- thatcat 12y agoI'm not sure that heirlooms are inherently more sustainable. Genetically modified strawberries for example don't freeze at lower temperatures, it is also possible add heat resistant traits, or make other modifications. Immunity to certain pesticides is just one business model for GMO's.
- beat 12y agoIt's a question of vulnerabilities. It's not just about shelf life or growing season... it's about surviving blights and such. Look into the history of the Big Boy banana (and the current concerns about cavandish bananas) for more on this.