G E N E T I C E N G I N E E R I N G
There is evidence that GM crops can cross with other species, spreading their genetic properties far beyond the field in which they are grown. Farmers in the U.S. suffered losses when insects developed resistance to their GM cotton crop which contained genes from the natural insecticide Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). Similarly, natural potatoes which developed herbicide-resistance have been discovered in fields up to one kilometre away from a GM potato crop.
"I am totally against genetically modified organisms," says Mieczyslaw Gorny, a food ecologist at Warsaw's University of Agriculture and a founding member of the Organic Farmers' Association in Poland. "Nature produces many thinking organisms; a great part of them disappear and die and only the strongest remain. With GMOs man is cutting out that process."
In Central Europe, organic farming is considered a viable possibility for the future development of agriculture. Farmers often cannot afford expensive chemicals and use traditional techniques to control insects and weeds. Many feel the region is ideal for farming in a sustainable way and could serve as a supplier to Western Europe, which is increasingly hungry for organic products. But if GMOs prove to affect the whole environment, organic products can no longer be guaranteed and in the long term it might be impossible to produce them.
Another concern is that Bt cultures are often used by organic farmers as a natural insecticide, producing toxins against insects. But if a GM crop includes the Bt gene, it produces toxins continually, which means it will encourage the emergence of resistance to the toxin, possibly making it ineffective - even on organic farms.
Nevertheless, for many non-organic farmers, GM plants are a dream come true. A crop which proves resistant to pests or disease would save them money on expensive pesticides and herbicides and make it easier to guarantee their yields. According to Istvan Olah of Monsanto Hungary, Central European farmers particularly stand to benefit. "Land ownership has changed and today most farmers are not specialised. They don't understand what they do," he says. "The problem is that the farmer applies more and more insecticides because the insects are becoming resistant." Untrained farmers often try to solve weed or insect problems by putting stronger chemicals on their crops, rather than using an alternative method, he says, and that can cause hazardous build-ups of toxins. Those who are not trained pesticide experts cannot legally buy the stronger chemicals but instead buy through black-market channels. Such products, he says, are more dangerous to the environment and to human health. GM crops cut out these risks as the farmer does not need to apply so many chemicals.
The main priority for East European farmers at this time is price. Multinational companies have not yet revealed how expensive their GM products will be although Monsanto's Olah concedes that the cost will not be "more expensive than the conventional method" using chemicals. Olah adds that Monsanto has already had telephone calls from interested farmers, even though the company hasn't yet begun to market GMOs.
If GM crops do lead to increased cases of resistant insects and weeds, farmers will probably resist the gamble. But if the technology does eliminate serious agricultural headaches in the short term, farmers are likely to take GMOs on board, regardless of their longer term effects.
The decision really rests with the whims of the West European market. Central European countries currently generate a large portion of their GDP through food exports to the EU - most not organically produced. If European consumers and their governments do not boycott GM food, farmers are unlikely to choose organic methods if they can afford the GM products which guarantee them bigger yields and more profits. But if the tide of opinion turns against genetically modified food, Central European farmers might wish they had chosen differently.
- Sarah Roe
