For the past two years, over 500 farmers from the different cotton-growing regions in Burkina Faso have documented their experience with Monsanto’s Bt cotton. This three-year farmer-led research initiative, called “Bt Cotton and Us: The Truth from our Fields,” is providing an important counterbalance, as Burkina Faso was the first country in West Africa to adopt genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and industry often lauds its success when promoting GMOs in other countries.
Watch what these farmers have to say about GMO Cotton:
Why is Inter Pares concerned with GMOs?
Inter Pares works to support and promote food sovereignty and ecological agriculture. Through our work with small farmers in the global South and here in Canada, we have come to understand the risks and consequences of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) for family farms, biodiversity and social justice. Here, in brief, are a few of the reasons Inter Pares is concerned about GMOs.
Twenty years ago, the Canadian government approved the first genetically modified crops and foods. Today, there are four GM crops grown in Canada: canola, corn, soy and sugar beet. In 2001, the Royal Society of Canada was tasked with providing advice on a series of questions related to the regulation of new GM food products. Entitled Elements of Precaution, the report and its recommendations were largely ignored. Major concerns about GMOs remain. What are the real impacts of GMOs on our environment, on our food and farming systems, on our economy, on our democracy, and on our health?
The Canadian government has not monitored or shared detailed information to answer these questions. To shed light on these questions, Inter Pares is working with the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network (CBAN) through the GMO Inquiry 2015. This ambitious initiative brings together research in Canada and from around the world, including the experiences of farmers, to understand the impacts of GMOs over the past two decades. Find out more: www.gmoinquiry.ca