Market Farming

["Jill Taylor Bussiere" <jdt AT itol.com>]

Willie,
    I agree, from what I have read, that RoundUp is less toxic than other
herbicides - at least the ones that have been used in the past.  However,
that doesn't mean that it is harmless.  I did a bit of research on RoundUp a
few years ago in writing an article for a paper - here it is.

As to Colombia - as many of you know, pesticide and herbicide companies
don't follow US rules and guidelines when dealing with other countries - so
it is entirely possible that the surficant used in the RoundUp sprayed in
Colombia is extremely problematic.  Note below that it is often the
surficant that causes the most problems with humans.
                                            Jill

Ever since I moved here, I have heard about Roundup.  Because I use an
organic approach,  I have been very uneasy when I hear people claim it is
benign.  Finding out that Monsanto made Roundup only contributed to my
unease, since BGH and aspartame and genetically engineered seeds are all
made by them as well.  Monsanto to me is the epitome of a greedy corporation
that cares not what destruction it sows as long as it can reap huge profits.
Or perhaps it is just fatally shortsighted.  A few weeks ago an article
about Roundup caught my eye, and it seemed a good time to learn more.

Roundup's effective ingredient is glyphosate, which is a very toxic,
non-discriminatory plant killer.  It is absorbed by a plant's leaves and
transported around the plant.  It inhibits a biochemical pathway,
prohibiting the plant from making its own food.  When glyphosate comes into
contact with the soil, it rapidly binds to soil particles, and bacteria can
break it down.  Glyphosate is an organiphosphate, as are other herbicides,
but while the other herbicides affect the nervous system of animals,
glyphosate does not.

The compounds used in Roundup, however, are toxic to humans, and can cause
side effects, and even death, but only if there is exposure to high levels.
In California, glyphosate is the third most commonly-reported cause of
pesticide-related illness among agricultural workers.   A formulation with
less irritating surfactants has been developed by Monsanto (Roundup
Biactive).  But the older formulas are still readily available, and when I
went looking for Roundup Biactive downtown, I could not find it - only the
older kinds were available.

Although there are other glyphosate herbicides, Roundup is the most popular
world-wide.  Its sales have increased about 20% per year, largely due to its
use with genetically engineered Roundup Ready crops, such as soybeans and
cotton.

Here are some problems associated with it:

*Its widespread use has resulted in plants resistant to glyphosate.
Goosegrass, a major world-wide weed, and ryegrass are two of them.

*The surfactants used in Roundup and other glyphosate products are toxic to
aquatic animals as well as humans.  It is only the Biactive formula that
does not carry an aquatic caution - and as mentioned before, that formula is
hard to get, especially for gardeners.  The toads living in my garden are at
risk, as well as frogs.

*A study in New Zealand found that glyphosate affects earthworms; it was
found to reduce growth and increase mortality.

*Glyphosate is toxic to beneficial mycorrhiza fungi, which help plants take
up nutrients from the soil.

*Glyphosate is toxic to beneficial arthropods - predatory mites and
parasitoids, organisms that consume the insects that eat crops.

*Contrary to the claim that Roundup breaks down in to harmless substances,
it has been found to be extremely persistent, with residue absorbed by
subsequent crops.  Glyphosate residues have been found in strawberries
(Cessna & Cain, 1992), lettuce, carrots, barley (U.S. EPA, 1993) when
planted a year after the last application.

*Monsanto used to advertise Roundup as "biodegradable" and "environmentally
friendly", but in 1997 it agreed to change its advertising due to complaints
from the State of New York's Attorney General's office, which had been
challenging its ads since 1991. It also agreed to pay $50,000 toward the
state's costs of pursuing the case.

Use of Roundup or any non-discriminatory herbicide poses the same problems
for an organic user.  The organic approach is to strive for balance on the
earth, to learn about the many alive beings and their interrelationships,
and to use that knowledge to increase the health of the crops grown for
human consumption, as well as the health of the soil and many creatures on
the earth.  Use of an herbicide disrupts that cycle.  Widespread use of
herbicides is dictated by a narrow view of plant health, where weeds and
insects are seen as the enemy, and only the crop and a few soil nutrients
are considered as worthy of attention.  There is so much more to it than
that.  The use of Roundup threatens the beneficial frogs, earthworms, and
smaller organisms mentioned above, as well as destroying their habitat.  It
also greatly diminishes the beings on which birds feed.  The life of the
earth, and the broader organic balance, is lessened, not enhanced.