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  • From: Anders Skarlind <Anders.Skalman@telia.com>
  • To: Seed Keepers <seedkeepers@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Seed Keepers] GM and me
  • Date: Fri, 29 Feb 2008 21:56:43 +0100

Hello Warron
I am a Swedish seed saver. I have been growing vegetable seeds for almost 20 years. Our climate is not so beneficial for seed production, but still we can grow seed of the plants that are adapted to our climate. We also have a lot to save and we are working on it.

At 20:49 2008-02-29, you wrote:


Hi people,

I`m new to the list. My name is Warron and I live
on a secluded greek island in the Aegean. I have been
a organic plant activist for years and collect and
save seeds I deem as rare (mostly from the med).

I think it is good to concentrate on the local varieties and those that grow well in your area.


As concerns GM, which I am agaisnt:

now and again pops up the thought that with the
rapidly changing climate the natural ability of plant
evolution to produce wonderful new varieties which
enrich our culinary habits and which might provide
solutions to our agricultural problems might be in
danger. We are losing non GM varieties on a daily
basis and the end result is that as a race we might be
forced to accept GM. God forbid that this happens.

This is the reason I collect seeds and have signed
up to this list, hoping to protect the diversity that
earth has up till now provided for us.

Right.

A more acceptable view of GM for me would be that of
GM crops being grown for specific industries, such as
biofuel production, bio plastics etc.

I would tend to agree to about 50%. But there a considerable side-effects, like stray pollination an and production of artificial bichemichal compounds with unknown effects. Just like any pollution it will spread to places where it doesn't belong. I think they ought to do proper research for another 100 years first. And then it wouldn't be commercially interesting and the money would go somewhere else.

Such products
with an increased yield/ha

I think so far gmos do not produce higher yield, AFAIK.

for said indusrties would
alleviate the upcomming strain on arable land
otherwise used for food production. Whether this is
feasible remains to be seen.


DonĀ“t get me wrong I am 100% bio, but looking back
on history once the steam train starts rolling there
is no stopping it. It would be better to find a way
where it could be incorparated in our daily life with
a minimum of damage.

I think there is a fair chance we can roll back chemical fertilisers and pesticides in a century or so, despite the dominating position they've had the last century. So we can do that with gm too, although it will take some while.

Cheers
Anders


:) warron.





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