Bees and Pollinators
July 19, 2018
Legit Cannabis Business
August 8, 2018
Food Chain Radio Show #1157
Michael Olson, Author & Urban Farming Agriculturalist
Monsanto, Bayer and Cancer
Killed by Weed Killer?
Guests: Carey Giliam – Research Director, U.S. Right to Know & Author,
Whitewash: The Story of a Weed Killer, Cancer and the Corruption of Science
Stacy Malkan, Co-Founder and Co-Director of US Right to Know &
Co-Founder of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics & Author of Not Just A Pretty Face
A few years ago I had the opportunity to sit in on a panel at the International Biotech Conference in Chicago. The discussion focused on the impact of crops having been genetically modified to withstand the herbicide glyphosate and also infused with the pesticide Bacillus thuringiensis.
Michael Olson Food Chain Radio – Killed by Weed Killer –Which will win the legal fight: cancer patients or Bayer / Monsanto?
My fellow panelists included the presidents of the American Corn, Soy and Hog Associations, and our audience was made up of members from the biotech industry.
My summation of the discussion went something like this: “Having spent the summers of my youth hoeing weeds in Montana’s Yellowstone River Valley, I know how precious your technology is to the farmers represented by my fellow panelists. Your genetically modified crops have made it possible for one farmer to grow thousands of acres of crops with no weeds or insect pests. Truly miraculous! You have made the farmers represented by my fellow panelists very happy, and yourselves very rich.
However, sooner or later, people are going to come to you and say: “Hey, what’s in your technology for me, but food that has been drenched in herbicides and infused with pesticides?”
In fact, every year the U.S. is drenched with some 200 million pounds of the weed killer glyphosate. Manufacturers say this drenching is safe, but 4,000 individuals claim it caused their cancer, and are taking Bayer / Monsanto to court for damages.
One of those individuals, Dewayne “Lee” Johnson, was granted an expedited trial due to the fact his doctors say he is dying and has very little time left. As his case is the first of thousands, and maybe even millions, we pause to speculate:
Leave a comment below: Which will win the legal fight: cancer patients or Bayer/Monsanto?
Nationally syndicated Food Chain Radio airs live Saturday mornings 9-10AM Pacific.
