Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[Pat Meadows <pat@meadows.pair.com>]

On Thu, 27 Jan 2005 18:57:21 -0700, you wrote:

>
>Does  this mean Seminis already sells GMO to some of our VEGETABLE seed
>companies?
>Will seed sellers state in their catalogs that a certain item is
>genetically modified? 
>

Many seed sellers (including us) have taken the 'Safe Seed
Pledge' and promise not to sell or buy GMO seeds.

The pledge is copied below my signature, at the bottom of
this message.

The Council for Responsible Genetics issues a booklet
listing all the seed sellers who have taken the Pledge.  
By buying from those seed sellers, you can be (reasonably)
sure you are not getting GMO seed.  

You can request copies of the booklet here, or look at their
online listing (which is, unfortunately IMHO, listed by
state rather than alphabetically).

http://www.gene-watch.org/programs/safeseed/sourcebook.html

You can also expect seed companies that have taken this
pledge to display it prominently somewhere on their websites
and catalogs. (We have it on our home page, for example.)

For myself, I will neither buy nor sell GMOs, and I expect
seed companies to specifically label *even hybrids* as such.
And I try to buy only from other seed companies that have
also taken the Safe Seed Pledge.  

In case anyone doesn't know the difference:  hybrids are two
varieties of the same organism, mixed by 'conventional'
means (pollination in the case of plants) as has been done
for many, many years.  An example is Better Boy Hybrid
tomatoes (Mama was one type of tomato, Papa was another type
of tomato).  A mixed-breed dog (Mama was a French poodle,
Papa was a German Shepherd) could also be said to be a
hybrid.  

GMO organisms, by contrast, are implanted with genetic
material from totally different organisms:  maybe a
strawberry would have genetic material from a fish, for
instance. 

Cheers,
Pat

---------------
Safe Seed Pledge

Agriculture and seeds provide the basis upon which our lives
depend. We must protect this foundation as a safe and
genetically stable source for future generations. For the
benefit of all farmers, gardeners and consumers who want an
alternative, we pledge that we do not knowingly buy or sell
genetically engineered seeds or plants.

The mechanical transfer of genetic material outside of
natural reproductive methods and between genera, families or
kingdoms, poses great biological risks as well as economic,
political, and cultural threats. We feel that genetically
engineered varieties have been insufficiently tested prior
to public release. More research and testing is necessary to
further assess the potential risks of genetically engineered
seeds. Further, we wish to support agricultural progress
that leads to healthier soils, genetically diverse
agricultural ecosystems and ultimately healthy people and
communities. 

-------------------------
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ContainerSeeds.com - vegetable, herb, fruit and edible
flower seeds for successful container growing.
http://www.containerseeds.com