WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration has requested formation of a World Trade Organization dispute panel as the United States pressed ahead with a case against the European Union over genetically modified food. The formal request for a WTO hearing panel had been expected after the United States and its partners in the dispute -- Canada and Argentina -- had been unable in June to narrow their differences with the EU over a European moratorium on importation of genetically modified crops. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick said the administration had no choice but to proceed with a WTO case in an effort to force the 15-nation European Union to accept genetically modified crops produced in the United States and other countries. "This trade barrier harms farmers and consumers around the world by denying them the benefits of productive, nutritious and environmentally friendly biotech products," Zoellick said in a statement Thursday. The EU imposed the moratorium because of concerns about food safety, which the United States contends are not supported by various scientific studies showing that genetically modified food poses no risks to humans. The EU recently moved to implement a system that would allow consumers to buy genetically modified food that had been clearly labeled. However, U.S. farm groups object that the labeling will be cumbersome to implement and is not needed since the food is safe. Biotech crops, including corn and soybeans genetically modified to resist insects or disease, have been widely grown in the United States for years. U.S. farmers say the EU moratorium has cost them $300 million in lost sales annually of bioengineered corn. The United States first gave notice that it planned to bring a WTO case against the EU in May. But under WTO rules, any country filing a trade complaint must first engage in informal consultations before making a request for a WTO panel to hear the dispute. The request for formation of a panel triggers a process in which both sides will file briefs and hold oral arguments before the WTO panel rules on the issue. Since the losing side has the right to appeal, the entire process usually takes about 18 months. If the Bush administration prevails, the EU would either have to allow imports of the modified crops or pay compensation to the United States. Barring either of those options, the United States and the other countries would be allowed to impose trade sanctions equal to the amount of sales lost because of the moratorium. "We have been extremely patient with the Europeans for almost five years," Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said Thursday. "We have had exhaustive discussions with the Europeans and it is now time to let the dispute settlement process work." The battle over genetically modified crops is just one of several high-profile trade disputes currently roiling U.S.-EU relations. Congress is currently struggling to revamp a $4 billion tax break received by thousands of U.S. companies after the EU won a WTO case that found the tax relief represented an illegal export subsidy. So, the US govt it going to the WTO to "force" the EU to unknowingly consume Biotech, hmm. But this isn't good enough, because then the rest of the world will have more choise than the land of the "free" when it comes to deciding what to consume. Fuck you, Amerika, and your Biotech! Peace
ya, i think this is a repeat thread, but i dunno, i think it was digit that posted it... well anyway, i think it should be labeled... i dont dont to eat that shit, i like all natural, like marijuana, its better than anything out there
of course it should be labeled! honestly, how hard can it really be to add a little extra box to the side that says its genetic super food? i dont want any of that crap in my system, theyd better start with the labeling. if they label the grade of eggs and meat, why not of vegetables and fruits too....
It was I that posted the last Biotech topic, but that was more of a rant. This is a new development that the US is "forcing" the EU to buy unlabeled biotech. Currently 70% of US corn and soy is GM crop, and there is no way to tell GM crops from "real" stuff. Consider this thread Biotech part 2. The thing is WHY is the govt. taking political steps to make sure that Europe eats the same shit food that america is forced to consume? Why is it that it's so much of an issue over a little fuckin label that will cost nothing additional to produce? (food already has labels, all it needs to say is Genetically Modified Corn, blah, blah) For like 2 cents of ink per 1000 labels an international trade "problem" could be resolved. But no, taxpayer money is being spent so our government ca fight a legal battle to seek the right to contaminate the rest of the world with it's blatant arrogance and ignorance. What's really sad is how a country supposedly so "proud" (and too damned self righteous) just accepts and ignores such things as the "freedom to consume natural foods". The ONLY excuse for fighting to keep GM labels off foods is because they NEED us to consume this shit for some agenda, whatever it may be, and it's not just for financial reasons, or reasons of supply and demand. America has such an excess in crop production, that in addition to (over)feeding it's own almost 300 million people(not to mention the food America tosses in landfills by the truckload), many other countries depend on America for crop production, yet farmers are still being paid off by the govt. NOT to grow crops (this is economic, because that much production will flood the world markets with food everyone can afford, and that won't make the capitalists happy at all, now will it?) Also, limiting crop production keeps he poor countries under the thumb of the US financially, because before the oppressed can revolt, they need to not FUCKING DIE OF STARVATION! So what does that have to do with GM foods? Well the main argument in discrete GM (aka not labeling shit) is that biotech allows "enough" food to be grown, and it is made to appear that without biotech there just wouldn't be enough to go around. Well why not STOP paying farmers not to grow, instead create jobs and increase production to match the decline in sales by growing organic crops. Why not give the consumer a choice? I'd gladly pay more for organic foods if it meant i could be assured that i am not consuming one of man's horrible mutated desecrations of nature. But then again, higher organic prices would only encourage corporations to claim "organic" while still using patial biotech, as the government turns a blind eye anyways. oops, this wasn't supposed to be a rant, but it is, i admit. It's just that this really pisses me off that i am denied the freedom to decide what i put in my body. I am denied this freedom by the government of "the land of the free", which is attempting to impose this very same thing forcefully on nations all over the world. That's just plain fucked up! Peace
let's get things straight. we humans eat genes all the time. all foodstuffs got genes in them, and they are not dangerous to us at all. if we eat gene modified tomatoes, we will not turn into some freak show somewhere down the line. the human body digests only vitamins, fat and proteins (and some trace minarals. some of which are not that good to us, others are essential to survival) from the stuff we eat. and no, we do not digest fibres. they only serve to clean out our system. the danger with GM food is *not* linked to human consumption, but rather the possibility that GM crops / animals supress non modified plants or animals that may down the line cause disasters due to lack of diversity in nature. like when rabbits were introduced in australia. the consequences of meddling with nature in this way are not totally mapped out, and thus may be a danger to future food crops and the ecology as a whole. another negative point to GM food, is the patent system, where enhanced wheat / rice / whatever are made sterile, so that farmers *need* to buy new seeds every year from some company just to stay in business, as opposed to the natural way wherein next years crop is a direct result of the seeds you harvest during this years crop. the breaking of the natural cycle just to make another buck is *wrong* and should be abhorred by any self respecting farmer.
thats true, but farmers are always going to sell out, there are some respectable ones, but there is still the assholes, just like the anti-pot people, they just dont understand
oh, i almost forgot. YES all GM food should be labeled so that we, the consumers, can vote with our mouth (literally). and all that shit 'bout wasting food or laying acres of farmland to waste just to keep prices up whilst there are millions upon millions starving around the world. really. it just goes to show how morally bancrupt raw capitalism really is.
I support the need for advances in Genetic sciences in both medicine and food production. However I completely disagree with moves such as this on both an environmental and political standpoint. Environmentally its just not wise to meddle with such things. I've been told how GM crops cannot interfere with nature, how all GM crops now do not produce seed and also cannot get into the food chain. its very definate in this area. that is.. asuming the companies are doing what they should do. But this is not the only concern. All this crop takes up space. It IS interfering with nature. Naturally genetically evolved plants and species are being displaced with these plants with genetics that do not behave in the natural way, and even cause other species to go wasting their time with them doing things they wouldnt do, or perhaps worse yet be causing as yet undiscovered harm to them. "Politically" its just not correct by any means to do this to the people. I feel like this is basically an extension of the Socialism through Capitalism thread, and a prime example of why capitalism is fucking us over. This is a perfect example of how we do not even live in "Democracy" any more, let alone any Socialism. We suffer under the rule of Elective Corporate Dictatorships. If the PEOPLE do not wish to eat such things, then so be it. that should be their right. I'd like to say a big FUCK YOU to the profitability of GM being the primary concern here. This is even a poor example of a consumer driven market!! this is such a fundamentally flawed idea that it even goes against capitalist principals!! oh wait.. no.... i just thought about it... this is very Very good capitalist tactics at play here. Big business reigns supreme once again. why? because it doesnt matter to give the consumers what they want.. it only matters to give them what they think they want. in one of my business classes i was told the motto "Perception is everything". It's like a mantra capitalists chant to themselves all the time. whatever tehy can get away with they will, just as long as peoples perception is of them being good, then they can get away with whatever they want. But also... as toosicks was saying... They must have an agenda beyond profit here. well, thats not stricktly true, profit is always the only real agenda, its how they go about that. now.... I dont want to sound like a conspiracy theorist here.... but i know i'm going to anyway. (better to sound like a raving loony conspiracy theorist than a nieve fool who thinks the corporations really are looking out for joe public) What better way to ensure profits than having whats known as a bread and butter service. Something that people "really" need. (remember that motto?) Milk companies know this. Oil companies know this (oh they've got it down to a tee). Soft Drink manufacturers know this (fuck you Dr Pepper! I escaped!). Tobacco companies know this. Heroin pushers know this. Capitalists in general know this, they'd love to sell you air and water. Its all about demand. If you can create demand in people so strong that they feel they NEED the product, whether they really do or not. Its been done to some large extent with all the secretly slightly addictive addatives in food for decades. but thats not enough. no. they want create a Ketresel White style product. We become so completely dependant on a substance (GM food) that it will become so impossable for us to not need it. now i'm not saying that this is what the GM foods that are on our shop shelves at the moment. But they're getting their foot in the door so that one day it could happen. Theres absolutely no logic in denying that this could happen. It sooo easily could. and if you understand capitalism at all, you'll realise that this is not a possability but a EVENTUALITY. they WILL do this at some point if we give them the chance. This is why it is so important that we do our very best to halt Capitalism NOW at this very dangerous crossroads in our scientific and technological development. Are we not slaves tied to the wheels of capitalism enough as it is already? Fuck Capitalism, Fuck Authoritariansim, Fuck Capitalist Authoritarianism! rant? you fucking bet. I'm madder than fucking fuck at what they're trying to do to us! PS. My dad is a farmer. lol.
THE WTO UNMASKED With the next World Trade Organisation meeting in Cancun coming up during 11-14 September, here are a few things you can do to protest the WTO's prioritisation of corporate profits over the health of our planet and its people. Genetically engineered food by Bush & Co. The US and corporations behind genetically engineered (GE) food are using the World Trade Organisation to tell the world what to eat and where to buy it from. Supported by Canada and Argentina, the US is trying to use the WTO to challenge the European Union's policy on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) - a policy that is the strictest in the world. The US challenge amounts to a scare tactic to "encourage" countries to open their markets to GE food. Many countries fear that if they reject GMOs, they will be met with huge trade sanctions potentially worth hundreds of millions, or even billions of dollars. Introducing "Genetically engineered food by Bush & Co.". Political cartoonist Mark Fiore has designed this great e-card for us to protest corporate attempts to take over our food chain. Support the global movement for the right to say no to GMOs and spread the word by sending it to your friends and colleagues: http://act.greenpeace.org/ecs/s2?i=863&sk=std While you’re sending those e-cards, don’t forget to take part in the cyberaction to tell Argentina and Canada to stop supporting the US war on consumers, farmers and the environment: http://act.greenpeace.org/ams/e?a=859&s=gen (This action link will also be sent along with the e-card.) You can discuss this issue here: http://act.greenpeace.org/1059220869 For more information Look out for the weblog from our campaigners on-the-ground and around Cancun. We’ll be linking from our in-depth WTO pages where you can also find links to more action: http://www.greenpeace.org/trade