Resource Pointer #387 (Genetically Modified Organisms- GMOs)
June 15, 2005

For copies of the following resources, please contact the appropriate publishers or organizations directly.

*Genetically Modified Crops: The African Challenge, 2005* Environmental Rights Action, Friends of the Earth, Nigeria. Explores the challenges Africa faces today as leaders are being assured that genetically modified or engineered (GM) crops and GM food aid will eradicate hunger, and malnutrition. Report emphasizes the environmental and social risks of a GMO invasion of Africa. 26 pages. Available online as a free download at http://www.eraction.org/index.php/. Contact Friends of the Earth Nigeria, PO Box 10577, Ugbowo, Benin City, Nigeria; phone +234 52 600165; fax +234 52 602680; email eraction@eraction.org; website http://www.eraction.org/.

*Genetically Engineered Crops and Pesticide Use in the United States: The First Nine Years, 2004* Charles M. Benbrook. Reveals that farmers now use more pesticides on the top three genetically engineered (GE) crops–corn, soybeans, and cotton–than on conventional varieties. Predicts that the intensity of herbicide use on GE crops is not likely to subside in the near future because of the popularity of herbicide tolerant (HT) varieties (tolerant to glyphosate), the limited supply of seeds for non-HT varieties, and increasingly aggressive pesticide industry campaigns targeting farmers growing HT crops. Available as a free download at http://www.ucsusa.org/food_and_environment/biotechnology/page.cfm?pageID=1542. Contact Union of Concerned Scientists, 2 Brattle Square, Cambridge, MA 02238-9105; phone (617) 547-5552; fax (617) 864-9405; website http://www.ucsusa.org/.

*Control Through Contamination: US Forcing GMO Corn and Free Trade on Mexico and Central America, 2003* S’ra DeSantis. Looks at the dangers genetically engineered crops and foods pose to human health, the environment and farming communities. Also focuses on the ways that free trade agreements force GMOs (genetically modified organisms) into Mexico and Central America. 28 pages. Available online as a free download at http://www.asej.org/index.php?name=home&ID=59. Contact ISE Biotechnology Project, Northeast Resistance Against Genetic Engineering, 1118 Maple Hill Road, Plainfield, VT 05667; phone (802) 454-7138; email info@neRAGE.org; website http://www.nerage.org/.

*Status of crop biotechnologies in Developing Countries – FAO report, 2003* Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Contains an on-line searchable database called FAO-BioDeC, providing information on biotechnology products and techniques in use or in the pipeline in developing countries. Entries cover genetically modified crops and non-GM biotechnologies. Accessible in Arabic, English, French and Spanish. 53 pages. Available as a free download at http://www.fao.org/biotech/. Contact FOA, Biotechnology in Food and Agriculture; email charlotte.lietaer@fao.org website http://www.fao.org/biotech/.

*GM Contamination Register, Website*http://www.gmcontaminationregister.org/. GeneWatch UK and Greenpeace. Intended to be a resource for individuals, public interest groups and governments. Searchable website gives details of all the known cases of GM contamination of food, feed, seed and wild plants that have taken place worldwide. Includes information about, and links to GeneWatch UK and Greenpeace websites as well as other useful sites. Contact GeneWatch UK, The Mill House, Manchester Road, Tideswell, Buxton, Derbyshire SK17 8LN, UK; email info@gmcontaminationregister.org; website http://www.genewatch.org.

We encourage those interested in having resources listed in the PANUPS Resource Pointer to send review copies of publications, videos or other resources to our office.

PANUPS is a weekly email news service providing resource guides and reporting on pesticide issues that don’t always get coverage by the mainstream media. It’s produced by Pesticide Action Network North America, a non-profit and non-governmental organization working to advance sustainable alternatives to pesticides worldwide.

You can join our efforts! We gladly accept donations for our work and all contributions are tax deductible in the United States. Visit http://www.panna.org/donate.