Failure in GE tree reporting may bring tears to Crop & Food’s onion trial

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State-owned GE tree researcher Scion has been negligent in its reporting, as has GE trial auditor MAF Biosecurity New Zealand, and the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA) may have been complicit in this, the Soil & Health Association has discovered.

Scion’s annual report to ERMA has been presented online recently*, but although all previous annual reports record that rabbits have been present and destroyed, the December 2007 report has no mention of rabbits, and for the first time reporting began is now presented as (Public Version).

“Soil & Health is keen to see the genuine unsanitised version, as presented to ERMA ahead of the recent Rotorua GE tree field trial breach. ERMA insist the report is unchanged, but a ‘Public Version’ on the heels of public criticism must be treated with scepticism,” said Soil & Health spokesperson Steffan Browning.

“Every preceding year, Scion has reported rabbit problems and stated that ‘in any event they could not get out as the fence was buried 1.5metres. Soil & Health in its last Organic NZ magazine, ran a report with photos of the rabbit problem and has also questioned other aspects of compliance.”

“Scion had not pruned all trees according to consent conditions and is now mulching prunings on site, then without a washdown facility is removing GE plant material on mowing equipment to other research and forest areas, and the wider environment.”

“MAF Biosecurity New Zealand had suggested that ERMA had granted an amendment to Scion to allow disposal on site, but such an amendment has not occurred and Scion are in clear breach of conditions by mulch mowing prunings, and MAF had failed again by not addressing the issue.”

Scion Acting chief executive Elspeth MacRae recently said that genes involved with the research would not pose a danger to the outside environment, as the genes were sourced from naturally occurring New Zealand organisms.

However Soil & Health National Councillor and ex Crop & Food GE researcher, Dr Elvira Dommisse said, “That does not mean that the same gene which has been genetically engineered into another species in an artificial gene construction will be harmless. This is the sort of misleading comment we get from some GE scientists. It is in part true, but we cannot conclude from this that all is well.”

“In its genetically engineered form, the gene is no longer under the control of its own DNA. It is jammed into a complicated construct made up of bits of DNA from a number of different organisms. This means the gene is always switched on and is engineered to produce large amounts of a protein that pine trees don’t make. The cellular machinery of a pine tree may produce a protein that is different from the original bacterial protein. Such an altered protein could be harmful.”

“This has already happened in genetically engineered peas, when a harmless bean protein became a toxin when engineered into the closely related pea,” said Dr Dommisse.

“Scions December report also states that all of the trees in one tree experiment are healthy and growing normally. Photographs available to Soil & Health show that is not necessarily the case with some trees having significant die-back,” said Mr Browning.

“Soil & Health would like to see a site plan showing controls and GE trees. The other tree experiment reported does not claim normal growth and photographs show abnormal growth.”

“MAF have also overlooked ERMA’s control condition of limiting the Scion trees to be hedged at 2 metres with just a central leader reaching 5 metres. However the trees are hedged nearer 5 metres with a few taller limbs. Pruning controls are to reduce the chance of GE pollen escape and with these tall bushy trees will be difficult to ensure no flowering occurs.”

“Consistent failures of auditing by MAF show reason to also be concerned at the hundreds of GE experiments in New Zealand universities, crown research institutes and laboratory containment.”

“Crop & Food GE onion researcher Colin Eady was crowing about developing a tearless onion, but with poor performance by all agencies involved with genetic engineering, and the public disdain at risky GE foods, Mr Eady will be wise to listen to farmer calls for New Zealand to be GE Free,” said Mr Browning.

“Crop & Food has already broken consent conditions to its GE onion trial and with MAF and ERMA consistently failing in their GE overview. Any tolerance for the GE trials of onions, brassicas, cows and trees is running out.”

“Producers and consumers share the desire for an economy based on the clean green environment that New Zealand’s discerning markets are looking to. Mr Eady will have no tears if Crop & Food’s research focuses on natural breeding techniques and extends its valuable organic research.”

Soil & Health is committed to GE free food and environment and aspires to an Organic 2020.

Note *Scion Annual Report to ERMA, 2007 Annual Report GMF99001 & GMF99005 (PUBLIC VERSION)

Sustainable wine growing is not clean or green enough

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The Soil & Health Association is concerned that key wine industry figures are fudging the reality of herbicide use and environmental protection in Marlborough. Soil & Health recommends faster moves to organic production.

Last week Soil & Health had suggested Marlborough’s Wairau Valley was being made a ‘Herbicide Valley’ because they had identified close to 70% of Marlborough vineyard land was currently herbicide sprayed to assist in frost protection.

“In reaction to Soil & Health’s claim, both New Zealand Winegrower’s Chair Stuart Smith, and Chief Executive Officer Philip Gregan, seriously downplayed the facts,” said Soil & Health spokesperson Steffan Browning. “The community deserves better.”

“It is about time New Zealand Winegrowers did some survey work, starting in the Brancott area, where the sprayed vineyard ground area appears to be up to 85% herbicide sprayed, although most areas are more typical of Soil & Health’s 70% claim.”

“Mr Gregan claimed last week that herbicide spraying throughout vineyards – for frost protection where bare earth radiated heat better – ‘was now extremely uncommon’. This is clearly not the case in Marlborough where many examples of blanket herbicide spraying are evident. Some of the 100% herbicide sprayed vineyards are displaying the Sustainable Wine Growing (SWG) notice although some Sustainable Wine Growing vineyards do not display the notice. Some vineyards were tilled but had been blanket herbicide sprayed ahead of that cultivation.”

Winegrowers NZ is the parent body of Sustainable Wine Growing, which was developed to provide a voluntary “best practice” model of environmental practices in the wine industry.

NZ Winegrowers chairman Stuart Smith said last week, “Whether it is 10% or 70%, the point of sustainable winegrowing is to make it sustainable so the land is left the same or better for the future. We are achieving that.”

“Soil & Health acknowledges that SWG is evolving, but permanent year round undervine spray strips and increased herbicide use in spring does not bode well now or for the future,” said Mr Browning. “Degraded soil biology and herbicide contamination and leaching do not equal the same or better, and urgent improvement is needed.”

“Sustainable Wine Growing has successfully encouraged significant change in some management practices, but fails to actually meet true environmental sustainability measures or compliance. Hopefully the next independent audit of Sustainable Wine Growers will show that more accurate spray records have been kept than those of the last published audit. It showed about a 50% discrepancy between grape growers SWG score sheets and their herbicide spray diaries. The grape industry leaders measure of current herbicide use seems to follow this discrepency.”

“Soil & Health is supportive of genuine sustainability measures and is hopeful that successful organic methods of production, which do not use herbicides, will be quickly taken up by the wine industry. Neither short or long term effects of herbicides and other sprays should be passed on to the community and environment.”

“Canopy spraying can also be managed in a way that prevents spraydrift. Enclosed spray units using shrouds or skirts that capture and collect unused spray, rather than allowing it to become airborne, should be used in areas subject to spray drift.”

“When combined with non herbicide based weed and frost control management, such technology can have Marlborough and the other grape growing regions of New Zealand meeting community health needs and the international expectations of a clean green land.”

“When comparing aesthetics, soil health, and worker and community safety, the differences between herbicide valley properties and those that use organic methods are obvious,” said Mr Browning.

Marlborough vineyard herbicide use now touching 70% soil coverage

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The Soil & Health Association is calling for Sustainable Wine Growing to lift its game, as close to 70% of Marlborough’s grape growing area is currently herbicide sprayed,” said spokesperson Steffan Browning.

“No wonder the industry changed its marketing strategy away from ‘The Riches Of a Clean Green Land.’”

“With excellent organic management alternatives now in use, it would have been better to aspire to giving credibility to ‘the riches of a clean green land,’ rather than putting the health of the community and the reputation of New Zealand at risk.”

A recent $100,000 rebranding with the “Pure Discovery” tagline was launched to replace a 15-year-old generic brand line ‘The Riches Of a Clean Green Land.’

“Pure Discovery may soon be about the aquifers and health of communities near the vineyards of New Zealand as the herbicide active ingredients, metabolites and surfactants leach and drift,” said Browning.

“While some vineyards are using organic management techniques and others a permanent 30% land area under-vine spray strip, the current practice of complete herbicide burning every second path as well as the under-vine strips, or frequently 100% of the surface area, to assist in frost protection, is making Marlborough’s Wairau Valley, a Herbicide Valley with an estimated 70% of vineyards sprayed with herbicide.”

While many operators say that it is ‘just Roundup or glyphosphate’, Monsanto agreed 10 years ago to discontinue the use of terms such as “biodegradable” and “environmentally friendly” in all advertising of glyphosate-containing products in New York state and to pay $50,000 toward the state’s costs of pursuing the case.

“According to the state, Monsanto advertisements had also implied that the risks of products such as Roundup are the same as those of the active ingredient, glyphosate, and did not take into account the possible risks associated with the product’s other ingredients.”

“Some surfactants and glyphosphate break down products, and also Amitrole another widely used herbicide, are known carcinogens or endocrine disruptors,” said Browning.

“Denmark has restrictions on glyphosphate to prevent groundwater contamination and local authorities there are being proactive to encourage more sustainable management.”

“The economic convenience of harmful herbicides and pesticides is creating areas such as Hawkes Bay and Marlborough as potential health risks, and anecdotal evidence points to increasing levels of cancers in both areas,” said Browning. “Endocrine disruptors are also involved with the sprays and in Marlborough the main population areas of Blenheim, Renwick and Seddon are surrounded or downwind of the spray zone.”

“The spraydrift problem extends nationwide with a slow uptake of available technology that can restrict spray drift and can recapture and recycle unused airborne sprays. This however does not address the blanket herbicide spraying of land.”

“Organic options, like green crop cultivation, mulching, compost application and the use of effective micro-organisms, not only reduce frost damage, but also improve soil health and take carbon dioxide out of the air to be stored as soil carbon.”

“Herbicide use is proven to reduce vine health through protein disruption, and because beneficial soil and plant organisms are killed, there is an increased susceptibility to pest and disease,” said Nicole Masters of biological soil consultants, EcoAgriLogic. “Herbicides also reduce grape storage life, and natural flavours can also be expected to be rounder without their use.”

“Clean alternatives to massive herbicide and pesticide use must be implemented in keeping with Brand New Zealand’s clean green 100% Pure image, and Soil & Health’s vision of an Organic 2020,” said Browning.

Animal Welfare Spin is Cruel Talk

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Federated Farmers President Charlie Pederson’s spin on caged animal welfare is cruel talk, when there are far more humane options available according to Soil & Health.

Mr Pederson was commenting on battery farming of poultry and pigs on TV3’s The Killing Fields 60 Minutes program last night.

“For Mr Pederson to repeat that the animals were likely to be safer and in better conditions than free range alternatives is a case of outright denial of the obvious”, said Soil & Health spokesperson Steffan Browning, ‘Mr Pederson should not be the apologist for those farmers that choose to continue barbaric methods of production.”

Caged and extremely stressed pigs were shown along with footage of battery chickens dead and alive, and also of dead and impoverished cows from the recent successful prosecution of a dairy farm manager.

“Federated Farmers have plenty of members that are very humane in their animal management and any attempt to defend the level of greed based cruelty shown by 60 Minutes would be better left to those directly responsible.”

“Mr Pederson would be better showing the good examples of organic farming where intensification is limited and pigs and poultry have an opportunity to express some natural behaviour, see the light of day and know what it is like to walk normally,” said Mr Browning.

BioGro Production Standards for example state that poultry must have unrestricted access to outside runs, which must provide access to fresh grass or a forage crop containing a diversity of species.

The BioGro Standards also prohibit factory farming or intensive livestock farming in enclosures with no pastoral access. Herd animals must not be kept individually.

“The real issues of intensification and animal welfare need facing up to and addressing,” said Mr Browning, “and while maintaining a good livelihood, organic producers and most of their neighbours are able to treat their livestock with far more respect than those on the 60 Minutes program.”

Soil & Health appreciates 60 Minutes Rod Vaughn, author Jeffery Mason and zoologist Dr Michael Morris for giving some insight into New Zealand factory farming.

Clopyralid, a great start to ridding supermarkets of agrichemicals

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Following a reassessment process, the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA) announced yesterday that weedkillers containing the herbicide clopyralid will be taken off the retail market from 19 August 2008.

“Chemicals that require commercial operators to be trained in handling and use should not be available for retail sale where purchasers may have no experience or training,” said Soil & Health spokesperson Steffan Browning. “The urban home environment where most children live should be a toxin-free environment.”

Although better known in organic circles as compost killer, clopyralid is used in lawn sprays to maintain weed free lawns. Clopyralid residues do not break down in composting, and tiny amounts of contaminated lawn clippings could downgrade municipal composts, potentially damaging sensitive crops such as potatoes and tomatoes.

Chlopyralid is sold as: No Lawn Weeds, Clover and Prickle; Clopyd 300; Void; Tango; Vivendi 300; Multiple; Contest; Pirate 300; Cardo; Versatill Herbicide; Archer; AGPRO; Cloralid 300; Radiate; and Clout. Soil & Health recommends retail customers carefully look at labels to ensure that this chemical nuisance is removed as soon as possible.

Soil & Health has long lobbied for the removal of clopyralid because it limits the availability of municipal compost for organic vegetable growers, and the Association congratulates the eventual application to ERMA by commercial composter Living Earth, through the New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development, to have clopyralid taken off the market.

“ERMA’s continued allowance of clopyralid for agricultural weed control and commercial turf management use, means however, that there will still be composting piles of contractors’ grass clippings that are useless for growing vegetables,” said Browning, “Clopyralid requires UV sunlight to breakdown effectively and no matter how hot the depths of a compost heap, clopyralid persists.”

“Unfortunately ERMA hasn’t recognised that commercial and park operators were the original problem when contamination was first noticed in the United States about 20 years ago. Grass collected by contractors is still going into a heap somewhere. The still permitted use as an agricultural herbicide is also unnecessary as there are non-clopyralid options.”

“While the retail withdrawal is a very good move, ERMA needs to be taking bolder steps, by totally removing the risks associated with clopyralid for municipal composters and organic growers alike.”

Depending on the clopyralid product, labels will include, “The substance is not to be used on turf.” and “Treated vegetation shall not be disposed of at any green waste recycling centre.” “Ecotoxic herbicide. Not for use in home gardens.” “ Do not use for treating turf that will be mown and the clippings used for making compost; or made available for collection for, or deposited at, a municipal green waste recycling depot.”

Soil & Health however is concerned that ‘cowboys’ will still contaminate the compost and subsequent food chain. Regardless of warning notices, contamination has been a consistent feature for decades,” said Browning. “I have experienced it my previous glasshouse production several times and yet the composters were being assured by contractors that their material was ‘clean’.”

Soil & Health is also concerned that ERMA’s statement downgraded the very real experience of growers and composters when it stated, “The Agency considers that much of the information presented by the applicant on the effects of clopyralid contamination in compost only amounts to anecdotal evidence. This is because the methods used for the studies were not given or the methodologies used had significant shortcomings.”

“ERMA is rather narrow in its view around ‘expert evidence’, and fails to fully appreciate the experience of growers and composters. Chemical industry statistical science does not make anecdotal evidence any less valid. Precaution should not favour economics.”

Soil & Health has an Organic 2020 target for New Zealand where persistent chemicals such as clopyralid will not cause economic and health risks, and the environment and community health will always come first.

Soil & Health applauds pause on high lysine corn

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Soil & Health applauds Food Safety Minister Annette King’s pause on the approval of a GE animal feed corn (LY038), engineered to produce high amounts of lysine for maximum weight gain in pigs and chickens. Monsanto is seeking approval for its appearance in processed foods in New Zealand to avoid costly recalls that would occur if the animal feed was not approved for human consumption.

“However Soil & Health is concerned that Minister Annette King’s request for advice from the NZ Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) may be to sort out whether this GE corn was legal in NZ, rather than the real, more concerning issue of food safety,” said spokesperson Steffan Browning.

“Some assurance that food safety is being investigated, would show New Zealand’s independence from the trans-Tasman agency FSANZ’s flawed assumptions and disregard for precaution.”

Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) has rejected a detailed, scientific submission from a leading New Zealand authority on GE organisms, Associate Professor Jack Heinemann of Canterbury University’s Centre for Integrated Research in Biosafety. Dr Heinemann wanted further, more rigorous testing of the LY038 corn.

Ms King, the sole New Zealand member of the trans-Tasman FSANZ Ministerial Council, had asked for the original review of an earlier FSANZ recommendation to allow the GE animal feed corn in human food. Ms King is now asking the NZFSA for more advice as to how appropriate it is for New Zealand to accept amendments for GE varieties intended for use as animal feed to join food standards.

To date Monsanto has only carried out feeding tests on chickens and rats eating raw corn, but the corn would be cooked when included in processed food for human consumption. When cooked, this corn produces toxic compounds that have been linked to several human illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes mellitis and cardiovascular disease.

The high lysine corn (LY038) has not been compared with its equivalent non-GE corn, as is required under NZ law, but with another variety of GE corn that has NOT been approved for human use anywhere in the world. The comparator has NO history of safe use. In fact, it is the brother of LY038.

”Soil & Health supports Heinemann’s submission and it is encouraging to see that Minister Annette King might not be taking the flawed FSANZ recommendation at face value,” said Browning. “Soil & Health has called for New Zealand to undertake its own food safety assessments and studies following a lack of scrutiny of GE feeding test data by Australian government authorities.”

“Decisions based on inadequate and biased food studies are not acceptable, and New Zealand needs to reclaim control over food safety testing and its food supply.”

“Soil & Health has a vision of an Organic 2020. Commitment by New Zealand’s leaders to a sustainable future and healthy community should target growth in organic production and reject risky GE foods such as LY038 high lysine corn.”

Toxins OK for Kiwi kids but not for export beef?

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The Soil & Health Association supports the New Zealand Food Safety Authority’s (NZFSA) tracing and successful prosecution of a farmer who misused the neurotoxic insecticide endosulphan on cattle, and now Soil & Health wants NZFSA to take the neurotoxic artificial sweetener aspartame out of schools.

“Both chemicals affect the human nervous system. One also affected New Zealand’s exports when misused, and the other affects the health of New Zealand’s children and community, but NZFSA is focused on supporting the economic base of the food industry and actual food safety comes a significant second best,” said Soil & Health spokesperson Steffan Browning.

An Auckland farmer was fined $15,000 yesterday for using endosulphan as a non-approved animal spray on cattle, following a breach of international standards of endosulphan in beef exports to Korea. The breach caused a suspension of exports to Korea.

NZFSA down played the health risks of endosulphan, which is banned in many countries, when the endosulphan residue was found, and yesterday said that there were no human health issues. NZFSA continues to defend endosulphan use in horticulture, although this highly toxic insecticide has been linked to breast cancer, hormonal disruption, mimicking oestrogen and producing infertility, as well as foetal, gene, neurological, behavioural and immune system damage even at very low doses.

The Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA) is to reassess the use of endosulphan in New Zealand within a year and has acknowledged a wide range of toxicities and the increasing banning and restrictions against the use of the pesticide. Significantly, agrichemical giant Bayer did not wish to provide data to support endosulphan’s continued use in New Zealand.

“Soil & Health accepts the importance of NZFSA in ensuring New Zealand exports meet overseas requirements, but wants the agency to lift its performance in protecting New Zealand’s citizens, especially children, from the synthetic and often toxic food additives and pesticides, such as aspartame and endosulphan,” said Browning.

“To achieve our children’s protection, NZFSA must work with Food Safety Minister Annette King to get aspartame away from schools, then phase these neurotoxins out of the food chain. This will require a change from the slavish reliance on automatic acceptance of overseas food safety agency decisions from industry-produced science. Reputable and independent science has shown the very real risks of aspartame and endosulphan, but to date NZFSA trots out acceptance of corrupted research, rather than rock big business’s toxic boat.”

Soil & Health and the Safe Food Campaign have been hosting Betty Martini, international anti-aspartame campaigner and expert from the USA, and Wellington aspartame sufferer Abby Cormack, to public meetings in Christchurch and Wellington, with Auckland’s Thursday 2nd August 7-30pm at the Auckland Medical School, 85 Grafton Road.

Soil & Health is also calling for school boards to pull aspartame from school canteens and vending machines for 60 days to test for behavioural and health improvements in pupils.

“The increasing incidence in obesity, depression, anxiety, and behavioural problems has been linked to aspartame use, and a range of negative health symptoms including headaches, rashes and cramps can be expected to reduce with an aspartame gap,” said Browning. “Diet drinks and sugar-free food products generally contain aspartame, and contrary to fighting obesity, are likely to aggravate the condition.”

“Soil & Health has a motto of Healthy Soil, Healthy Food, Healthy People, and promotes a diet free from synthetic additives.”