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Argentina's GM Woes

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The Institute of Science in Society

Science Society Sustainability

http://www.i-sis.org.uk

 

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ISIS Director m.w.ho

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Argentina’s GM Woes

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Proponents claim that GM crops are necessary for fighting hunger in developing

countries and decreasing the use of pesticides. The evidence shows otherwise. GM

crops have exacerbated poverty and hunger, increased herbicides use, brought new

health hazards, destroyed agricultural land and livelihoods, and resulted in

deforestation. Report by Dr. Lilian Joensen in Buenos Aires, Argentina and Dr.

Mae-Wan Ho in London, UK.

 

The references for this article are available in the ISIS members site

(http://www.i-sis.org.uk/full/AGMWFull.php). Full details here

http://www.i-sis.org.uk/membership.php

 

Within the past decade in Argentina, 160,000 families of small farmers have left

the land, unable to compete with large farmers. GM soya has served to exacerbate

this trend towards large-scale, industrial agriculture, accelerating poverty.

 

Roundup Ready (RR) soya clearly requires more, not less, herbicide than

conventional soya. In 2001, more than 9.1 million kg of extra herbicide was used

with GM soya compared with non-GM. The use of glyphosate doubled from 28 million

litres in the period 1997/98 to 56 million litres in 1998/1999, and reached 100

millions in the last (2002) season.

 

RR soya crops also yield 5% to 10% less compared with the non-GM varieties grown

under similar soil conditions, confirming findings in the United States.

Scientists at the University of Arkansas showed that root development, nodule

formation and nitrogen fixation worsened in some varieties of RR soya and the

effects are exacerbated under strong drought conditions or in relatively

infertile fields. That is because the symbiotic bacterium responsible for fixing

nitrogen in soya, Bradyrhizobium japonicum, is very sensitive to drought and to

Roundup.

 

Argentina started to transform its economy to an export-led focus on soya when

it had to pay back foreign debt with money gained through export commodities.

During the last quarter century, soybean production increased at an

unprecedented rate from an area of 38 000 hectares in 1970 to approximately 13

million hectares today. Around 70% of the soybean harvested is converted in

oil-processing plants, most of which is exported, providing 81% of the world’s

exported soya oil and 36% of soybean meal.

 

Soya was identified as a buoyant market, and Monsanto’s offer of subsidized

Roundup Ready Soya seed and heavily discounted glyphosate prices in 1996 proved

irresistible to Argentinean farmers.

 

Practically all of 13 million hectares of soya crop are GM, in particular, RR

soya. Bt cotton and Bt maize cover another million hectares between them.

Monsanto is in the process of applying for a permit to grow RR maize.

 

Argentina is currently the second biggest producer of GM Soya in the World. The

countryside has been transformed from traditional mixed and rotation farming,

which secured soil fertility and minimized the use of pesticides, to almost

entirely GM soya.

 

Financial problems for farmers are set to worsen with Monsanto now starting to

charge royalties for their seeds, where before, it was allowing farm-saved

seeds. Twenty-four million acres of land belonging to bankrupted small farmers

are about to be auctioned by the banks.

 

With an increase in poverty, a glut in soya, and a deficit of other agricultural

products, the government began to promote soya as a healthy alternative to

traditional foodstuffs such as meat and milk. A campaign, Soja Solidaridad (Soya

Solidarity) was launched. Soup kitchens served soya-based meals and cookbooks

were written with soya-based recipes. As a result, many people are consuming

soya-based foods on a daily basis.

 

There is a large body of scientific evidence showing that an unbalanced diet

based on soya can have nutritionally damaging effects. Too much soya can inhibit

absorption of calcium, iron, zinc and vitamin B12, and doctors in Argentina are

already seeing such symptoms. Among the most worrying observation is the early

onset of puberty in girls, possibly linked to the high levels of phytoestrogen

in soya.

 

Other health problems have been caused by the widespread increased use of

glyphosate (Roundup). Glyphosate is entering the water supply. There are reports

of crop sprayings by plane, dousing people and their homes. The more visible

symptoms of this spraying include skin and eye irritations and recent field

research (personal communications by local people and medical doctors) suggests

that there is a great increase in the incidence of cancer within populations

surrounding RR soya fields.

 

Peasants in Santiago del Estero, North Argentina, who have been living there for

generations, say that they are being threatened by big land-owners linked to

seed companies and supported by local police and parapolice-like forces. To

intimidate the peasants, they set fire to the forests while shooting around the

people in order to take their land for planting RRsoya.

 

Studies carried out by the University of Formosa Province have reported serious

health problems in peasant communities due to pesticide fumigation on

surrounding RRsoya fields. Their crop and animal production, which families

depend on to survive, have been completely destroyed. A judge has forbidden the

use of pesticides on RRsoya, but companies have flouted the prohibition and kept

on fumigating.

 

Roundup resistant weeds have appeared. A list of the resistant weeds published

to-date include Commelia erecta, Convulvulus arvensis, Ipomoea purpurea, Iresine

difusa, Hybanthus parviflorus, Parietaria debilis, Viola arvensis, Petunia

axillaris, Verbena sp, Hybanthu sparviflorus, Tragopogon sp, Senecio pampeanus,

Sonchu soleraceus, Sonchu sasper and Taraxa cumofficinale.

 

Highly toxic herbicides, some of them banned in other countries, which

glyphosate was supposed to replace, have had to be brought back in use in

addition to glyphosate. These include 2,4D, 2,4DB, Atrazine, Paraquat,

Metsulphuron Methyl, Imazethapyr. There are also reports of a fungus, new in

Argentina (Phakopsora sp.) which is spreading and requiring additional

fungicide.

 

In order to fight the " insect complex " that invade soya plantations (Nezara

viridula, Piezodorus guildinii, Edessa meditabunda, Dichelops furcatus)

producers are recommended to use endosulphan together with cipermetrine, which

together are labeled as extremely toxic for bees and fish and very toxic for

birds. Prices for the insecticides, including air-fumigation are specified in

the recommendations.

 

Argentina’s balance of agricultural products has been seriously affected by the

focus on a soya-led export economy. Production of traditional Argentinean

products such as milk, wheat and meat has gone down, and the country now imports

where it used to export. Other produce, such as lentils, peas, sweet maize, as

well as different potato and sweet potato varieties have disappeared together

with the industries linked to their processing. Honey producers have been

affected due to GM contamination, the loss of flora diversity, as well as well

as death of bees by herbicide poisoning. These are not only bad for the

country’s economy but also devastating for the health and nutrition of the

entire population.

 

Soya plantations began in the Argentina Pampas, one of the six most

agriculturally productive regions in the world. Its soils cover some 9 million

hectares and used to be rich in nutrients and organic matter. The ‘no tillage`

method was introduced 10 years ago to reduce soil erosion on farms. Seeds are

planted directly into the soil, without the need for ploughing, and herbicides

are used to remove weeds. For this reason, direct seeding is often promoted as

an environmentally friendly farming technique.

 

When herbicide tolerant GM soya was introduced, it became very popular in

Argentina, as it fit in perfectly with no tillage. The rate of adoption of GM

soya has surpassed even the industry’s highest expectations. Farmers can now use

glyphosate to remove weeds in combination with glyphosate-tolerant GM soya.

 

But problems soon appeared. Although direct seeding has reduced the rate of

erosion, new diseases and pests have emerged, and the levels of nitrogen and

phosphates in the soil were markedly reduced. Most recently, herbicide-resistant

weeds have appeared requiring the use of more poisonous herbicides as mentioned

earlier.

 

Development of land for RR soya plantations has led to deforestation in

Argentina, with serious impacts on biodiversity and water resources. " We have

already lost more than 130,000ha of forest, " says the director of the

Argentina’s Fundación Vida Silvestre (Wildlife Foundation), Javier Corcuera. " If

we carry on like this we can expect more flooding and less natural resources for

the population. "

 

The no-till technique promoted with RR soya as a means of reducing carbon

dioxide emission actually produces worse damages by compaction of the ground,

requiring more agrochemicals every year.

 

" In Argentina, the ‘success’ of the GM soya bean story must largely be

attributed to marketing by the seed companies involved, rather than scientific

evidence and farmer experience, " says Walter Pengue, agricultural engineer

specialised in genetic improvement at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

 

 

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General Enquiries sam

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