Another Reason to Garden - GMO Food & Roundup

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Sometimes when you have been doing something for a long time, you forget that others may not know some of the basic things you take for granted.  I recently posted an article called If You Are Starting A Garden - Count The Cost. In it I mentioned that one reason seed companies have developed genetically modified plants is so that they can spray them with Roundup for easier harvest.  When I wrote that, I forgot that new gardeners may not know what Roundup is so I decided to followup on it here.

It seems that it is easier to harvest such crops as cotton and soybeans if there aren’t any leaves to get in the way.  By manipulating the genes in these and other crops, farmers can spray Roundup on them before harvest.  The leaves will die and fall off making the crop easier to pick.  That’s great for the farmers but being that this is a recent development, there is no long term study proving that it is safe for you.

An alternative use is to develop plants that can absorb the Roundup and not die.  That way farmers can spray it on the crops and kill the weeds that grow among them but not harm the crops.

Roundup has been used for years as a very effective weedkiller.  You spray it on what you want to kill.  It is absorbed into the leaves and roots of the plant and then kills it from the inside out.  Since it becomes part of the plant you are killing, it isn’t something that you can wash off.  By genetically modifying these crops, scientists have found a way to selectively kill the part of the plant they want but that doesn’t mean there is no Roundup in the rest of the plant.

You might want to read this article by Dr. Mercola called Monsanto’s Roundup Residues in GM Food Cause Cell Damage

I’m not trying to scare anyone.  If anything, I am showing you why it is more important to garden today than ever before.  I also hope that you will research the GMO issue for yourself and make an intelligent decision about what you are eating.  Many European countries have banned GMO foods from their stores but here in America they don’t even have to be labeled.  Do you really think you can rely on the politicians to determine what is best for you?

Follow up information:

Does Genetically Modified Food Matter?

Institute for Responsible Technology

Genetically Modified Foods - What to Know Before You Eat Them