The Department of Justice has agreed with what a lot of students in Intro to Gastronomy seem to think: that the concentration of power among seed companies (who all use/promote GMOs) might be a problem.... As such, they've started a series of workshops that look into this issue.
Here is their press release. Of course, the seed companies are only part of the issue. What are other factors that will need to change in order to change our food culture?
If the government is really going to look into it that would be fantastic. However I am not certain they are just trying to appease the people while really just listening to the lobbyists. A couple things that the government really doesnt have control over though is the fact that Americans are generally too cheap to buy unprocessed food anymore. Why buy the meat when you can just go to Mcdonalds and get one for a dollar. They would also have to look at the convenience that Americans treasure. Not even most farmers now want to do more work than they have to, so if they can purchase a seed that has pesticides built in why not purchase it, itll be cheaper in the long run.
ReplyDeleteThomas Mazzetti
I think it would be good for the government to consider regulating seed companies. A company should be able to own the seed that they create. If you create something new it is only fair that you own the rights to it. However if seeds that are "owned" by a company blow into a farmers field and begin growing there is no way that that farmer should be sued. Unless the company can prove that the farmer intended to grow their seed without purchasing it they should have no right to sue. Ultimately it is the consumers choice whether or not to use GMO's and therefore ultimately the consumer who decides the success of these companies. An example of this is healthcare in the states. Whenever people are horrified by a story about someone not recieving healthcare and dying because they could not afford insurance, and are commenting on how it isn't right and should never have happened, they have to remember that it is them that never wanted public healthcare in the first place. Most people will choose the cheaper option and really don't care about whether it is organic, GMO, or conventionally grown. So when people get mad about GMO's they should look in a mirror. You can't have your cake and eat it to. Either choose the organic and more expensive option that helps farmers more, or choose the cheaper GMO that funds the large corporations and stop being a hypocrite.
ReplyDeleteI think that the concentration of power of the seed companies (and other companies) is the biggest issue. There are too many companies buying up others so that they can control not just one market, but multiple related markets. In the case of the biotech/pesticide companies, controlling the market of seed companies, they are only focusing on certain aspects of business to make profit. Profit always seems to be the only goal of business, and when these companies control products that relate to public health, there should be more focus on quality and long-term effects. Government should control the factors of which businesses should have to comply.
ReplyDeleteI believe that ultimately the consumers voice is the only true agent of change. A culture is changed only through the will of the people. A concentration of power in the industrial sector is tantamount to the neglect and ignorance of what food is within the consumer sector. People have become just consumers and canola is canola, or chicken is just chicken. A greater emphasis on food education and identity is the necessary change. Though regulation for seed companies who use GMO's is in my opinion necessary, consumer food education is the most important aspect to changing the apathy toward what food is and how it affects our health. With greater public knowledge and interest comes greater corporate, or industrial responsibility.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the concentration of power of the seeds companies is a big problem. But bigger than that is the fact that we are losing the diversity. Comercial seeds are most of the times GMO seeds that are made for specific comercial uses. When using these seeds we are descarting so many different and important biologic aspects necessary to maintain a specie. Now is time to think about what we really want for our future. Do you think is a safe think to concentrate just a few types of genes from a specific plant? What about the diversity? What about the problems that the lack of the diversity can create for us in a a brief future? I think it's more than in time to take a look on that instead of start to do something when it's too late.
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