Saturday, September 24, 2005

Lake County Publishing Editorial Board

On Tuesday, the board of supervisors will discuss whether or not to accept an ordinance crafted by a local group, Coalition for Responsible Agriculture (CRG) that places a 30-month moratorium on the introduction of Roundup Ready alfalfa in Lake County. Developed by Monsanto, one of the world's largest and most powerful multinational corporations, this alfalfa is meant to be resistant to one of Monsanto's own products, Roundup, a powerful herbicide.

The corporation suggests that this will allow growers to use its herbicide to kill weeds while not harming the alfalfa itself. The government cleared the crop for release in July. Agricultural publications have cited its potential for greater yields and weed resistance; at the same time, concerns have emerged from various corners. CRG members have compared the seed's introduction to letting a genie out of a bottle; other GMO opponents around the country call the issue a "Pandora's box" that, once opened, can't be closed.

Their concerns aren't isolated. An August article in Kennewick, Wash.'s Tri-City Herald says alfalfa growers in the region's Columbia Basin are concerned that Japanese export markets will reject the crop based on the perception that "the product is unnatural" and could affect both people and the milk from dairy cows that eat the hay. An August 2004 article from the University of California's Agriculture and Natural Resources Department touts the seed as promising while mentioning "weed shift," a phenomenon in which weeds Roundup doesn't control proliferate, and that certain weeds develop resistance to Roundup's active ingredient, glyphosate.

In Lake County where approximately 108,000 acres are devoted to some type of agricultural use less than 100 acres of the crop is grown by a handful of farmers, said agricultural commissioner Steve Hajik. Hajik said he doesn't know of any local farmers planning to use the seed. While there is, he said, a search on for an alternate crop to pears, the acreage of which continues to decline, he added, "I don't know if alfalfa is it." It's unlikely that this seed would either be introduced or much used in Lake County, which Chuck March executive director of the Lake County Farm Bureau and a moratorium opponent told us this week. "It's almost a non-issue in Lake County," he said.

Yet you wouldn't know that by the flood of e-mails we've received from "think tanks" across the country urging us to oppose the moratorium. These groups aren't unbiased; in fact, they're all funded, at least in part, by Monsanto. When we questioned these groups about their affiliations, and then asked them, "What's the rush?" about introducing the crop, their hard-sell tactics immediately took a harder edge, accusing us of bias. That told us this matter is less about helping farmers and more about helping Monsanto, and the safety of Lake County's ecosystem doesn't figure anywhere.

For March, the moratorium is "the first step for an all-out ban on GMOs." Such a ban, he said, could prevent positive steps forward in crop development such as winegrapes resistant to Pierce's disease. "Our whole position is that it (GMOs) should be regulated at the state level, not local," said March. State agencies, like the Department of Food and Agriculture, March said, are better equipped to set GMO regulations, much as they do with pesticides.

Yet, we believe this issue is about self-determination, allowing local citizens and officials to judge products on their merit and benefits, on a case-by-case basis, instead of leaving the decisions to distant, politically charged processes behind closed doors in Sacramento. This matter requires an approach that blends caution, concern for everyone involved and a respect for the environment.

The Record-Bee supports the 30-month moratorium on Roundup Ready alfalfa. Long-term, careful study and anecdotal evidence in the open market will address concerns about the seed, and tell us if it is truly safe. We're not saying that we favor a total GMO ban. But we do believe that we need to think carefully before opening a door that, once opened, can never be closed.

[The Lake County Publishing Editorial Board includes Publisher Gregg McConnell, Editor Elizabeth Larson, News Editor David Stoneberg and Sports Editor Brian Sumpter.]