i'm tired hard welcome to the big picture. controlling the seeds is not some abstraction whoever provides the world seeds controls the world's food supply arlington steel vanity fair. for the first time corporations are patenting products that are self replicating uncontrollable and irretrievable.

genetically engineered pollen carried by wind insects bacteria viruses and humans has inadvertently traveled the globe. scientists in laboratories and corporate spokespeople would have americans believe that pollen from flowering plants in the open environment can be controlled farmers hay fever sufferers and anyone who observes the chaotic natural world would disagree tonight a look into the world of genetically modified organisms through the lens of new mexico's iconic chili peppers. at the plant genetic engineering laboratory on the campus of new mexico state university in las cruces scientists are developing a genetically engineered chili pepper. genetically engineering the new mexico chili pepper has stirred controversy because it is a cultural heirloom and defines new mexican cuisine this is what he mexico is known

for and this is what makes this unique. i mean this is this is threatening this is very threatening to our stars. well i mean this is the seeds are sacred some of these traditional chili lines they've been bred and developed and passed down from generations here in new mexico or where we interface with nature we interface with traditional culture we have a different experience and a lot of it is reverence all of the social and economic and marketing ramifications impacts on the environment impacts on potential use of herbicides. impacts on the on farmers in the southern part of the state the organic farmers as well as farmers in the northern part of the state i think all those questions should be investigated before we embark on spending a lot of money developing this plant new mexican cuisine from internationally recognized restaurants to the lowliest taco truck is defined by chile the only

important question one needs to ask is red ripe in chile or the green unripened variety it is the state's idaho potato it is new mexicans wisconsin cheese originally developed in the rio grande valley the distinctive peppers applied liberally to new mexican burgers pizza salad fudge bagels french tarts. and even beer. but as a result of the north american free trade act and heightened border security new mexico's chili pepper harvest has been cut by two thirds half of the jobs in the industry have disappeared the labor shortage and other production problems are suffered almost exclusively by large industrial farming operations in the southern half of the state the commercial producers than here have said that they've had to leave fields fallow they simply haven't been able to find a hand labor to harvest them in the last couple of years in contrast during the

same period organic farmers and traditional landry's farmers have enjoyed chili price increases. in the face of overwhelming evidence of pollen drift gene flow and crop migration persistent safety questions and never double weed resistance charges of cultural imperialism predatory practices of biotech corporations and increasing popular resistance to genetically modified organisms worldwide new mexico prepares its genetically engineered chile. in two thousand and seven state legislators signed a memorial calling for protection against genetic contamination of native seeds shortly thereafter legislators awarded m.m.s. you one million dollars aimed at research including developing a genetically engineered chili pepper there with a slap in the face to learn that our state had sponsored the genetic engineering of chile had after the year previous they had supporter supported the farmer's rights

to keep their seeds. on contaminated by genetic engineering the genetically engineered chili animists you was developing would reduce reliance on labor at least in the short term by was standing application of the herbicide glyphosate which is in products like been santo's round up and syngenta has touched down i q is. our intent is really to provide a benefit to the chili producers and we can give them a crop that allows them to far more sustainably. allows on the farm more productively or predictably and that's our goal the phrases benefiting the farmer and feeding the hungry are used to justify increased input costs in pesticides and machinery to the detriment of agro ecological approaches but since those phrases came into vogue the u.s. farm population has been decimated today there are more prisoners in the us than

farmers worldwide more than one billion people are chronically hungry largely due. food price increases the genetically modified organism as that term as it's currently used really refers to organisms created through genetic engineering and most often it means introducing genes that are not within. the species pool the bacteria shoots genes into the plants the plant grows a big tumor that makes this really weird compound that only aggro bacterium can eat in the sag bacteria and sets up its own little food factory so this natural disease is really the basis for a lot of genetic engineering we do today. people figured out that this process happened. they learned how to take the disease causing genes out of the transfer of d.n.a.

and learned how to replace them with genes of interest so we still use agro bacterium we put the genes we want in agra bacterium delivers the d.n.a. into the plant cells where the plants go ahead and use. and what's the difference between engineering and the natural disease is we've taken the disease causing genes out and replaced them with genes that were interested in the genetically engineered chili is being made through a process called systemic six where researchers isolate and then reintroduce a gene from the same species though at first seemingly less controversial the process still involves foreign bacteria antibiotics test tubes and has no guarantee of placing the gene or its promoter anywhere near its original place in the d.n.a. chain let's say you want to create a corn planted that produces its own pesticide you take a gene for bacteria that produces a natural talks and call bt for

a basilisk range and says you take that gene you put a promoter which is an odd switch a stop signal which says stop reading the gene ends here you make a gene called structed you make millions of copies you load a good literally i'd shoot those millions of genes into a plate of millions of cells hoping that some of those genes will make their way into the d.n.a. of some of those they're saying farmers have been doing this for thousands of years farmers have across species for thousands of years with this genesis is the same species. so there's this there is this thing farmers have not been but putting bacteria in the cotton for thousands of the year. they never put bacteria in the cotton. or bacteria in the corn. it's not possible. that genetic manipulation whether or not the genetically engineered chili is g.m.o. is a distinction that could cost the new mexico farmers access to many foreign export markets the e.u.

is. much more comfortable with crops generated through a systemic approach dr hansen and the dean at the end of misuse school of agriculture as you see in the sea mail are trying to say that their chili will not be considered a g.m.o. in the european union and other countries that ban or curtail their use they make this argument despite laws that clearly say this is stanek approach like the one and then misuse using is in fact creating a genetically modified organism. doctors heal sarah ling from the university of conn in france has helped shape european policy towards genetically modified organisms called the european union and four hundred fifty countries around the world the definition of goods here no is not a matter where the gene comes from it's a matter of the gene being modified to vitro in its you know the backbone of the

origin of the gene what is clear is that more than one hundred countries around the world may require all chili from new mexico to be tested for genetic engineering or even bar imports from u.s. farmers out right this burgeoning resistance to genetically modified organisms results as much from anger at government and industry economic practices as from the real or imagined health threats of genetically modified products. has that this two thousand and eight investigative report by donald barlett and james steele for vanity fair reveals monsanto goes after farmers farmers co-ops seed dealers anyone it suspects may have infringed its patents of genetically modified seeds as interviews and reams of court documents reveal monsanto relies on a shadowy army of private investigators and agents in the american heartland to strike fear into farm country they fanned out into fields and farm towns where they

secretly videotaped and photographed farmers store owners and co-ops infiltrate community meetings and gather information from informants about farming activities farmers say that months on tow agents pretend to be surveyors others confront farmers on their land and try to pressure them to sign papers giving monsanto access to their private records farmers call them the seed police and use such words as dished apo and mafia to describe their tactics. the international assessment of agricultural knowledge science and technology for development titled agriculture at a crossroads is a six hundred page a global report issued by the world bank the united nations and the walled health organization it is the most comprehensive inclusive agricultural study ever completed that directly addresses and recommend solutions to world hunger you know

i think i've kind of had a lifelong appreciation of the population growth versus food production regardless of dr hansen spro fest concerns for world hunger he was unaware of the most comprehensive analysis of agricultural science ever undertaken to address hunger. i've seen the perceptions across many times it doesn't matter if there's snow a heat wave or hail stones people keep on going i don't expect anything i just want i told myself i keep on going as long as my heart told me to work that's all i want to get the moment for me here i can send so much she's see i'm carrying these sayings on my shoulder.

do you want me to put a man in shared you know that's fine a lot of people were so exhausted they could barely walk their feet hurt and some of them fainted we will bring you back to it three two wanted to keep going i don't know what tomorrow will bring. the interview. i feel good film.

it was just put out by the world. the report is that best indifferent to genetic engineering and at times openly hostile this hostility comes despite the report

having been initiated by monsanto syngenta and the world bank for your study. was started as a discussion with the world a. large producers about terms as they produced the six other states that haven't had that oh. well it would be hard because there's really not that much you know ok discusses genetically modified organisms as publication of the document with its pointed criticism of genetically modified crops through near multinational biotech giants monsanto and syngenta withdrew their support for it first supporting the a t.d. and then abandoning it when biotechnology was not surely did months santo and syngenta drew a rebuke from the industry friendly journal nature when we asked dr hansen for

research supporting his positions on safety crop yield and migration he provided a two thousand and five compendium that sided studies completed as long as a decade ago none were current no independent long term feeding studies no evidence of sustained yield gain it would say well you know it's more popular bull for the farmers and what the one thing i would people say is what's he have a higher yield to chill of chili you know with genetically chili but if you look at the studies that have been done that's really not true as the multinational corporations profit and small farmers disappear not a single genetically modified crops has been marketed for increased yield drought tolerance salt resistance or enhanced nutrition the proponents of genetic engineering have misled the public about its benefits and deliberately so. and it hasn't lived really lived up to its promise and they haven't increased yields they they haven't decreased pesticide use they haven't solved any hunger problems

whatsoever. and so i don't even understand how people with a straight face can defend genetic engineering transgenic crops you know there's several examples that have been their field and both the u.s. and abroad and they've you know demonstrated. they've been able to maintain your old increase returns to farmers. has noted in the world bank report a relatively small number of huge farming operations have increased land holdings and benefited financially. there has not been any yield improvement to genetically engineer. crops and that's my understanding that it really hasn't solved any major problems it's just my profits from monsanto as far as i can tell month as perhaps a deserved whipping boy but it should be noted that other biotechnology

corporations sue farmers and that m.m.s. you will likely hold the patent rights to the genetically engineered chili seed. when asked who will breed the chili seed or who will sell it and then miss you could not provide an answer when asked if farmers would have to buy the genetically engineered chili seed for every planting rather than save it and a mess you could not provide an answer one of my main concerns with that with the genetically engineered chilies cvs especially is that it is becoming more and more difficult to find pure seeds you know seize it or that are that are not content not genetically engineered and certain well some brides. canola and soybeans i mean it's almost impossible not to find g.m.o. soybeans and canola and what is happening is that the u.s.c. company is actually going to other countries you know that the do not have the highest events of genetically engineered crops to grow this the non g.e.

see other galaxies for those types of those types across a small number of biotech chemical companies including monsanto and syngenta have benefited enormously one company now owns one fourth of the world seed suppliers and patted rights on over eighty percent of the g.m. soy and cord seeds sold in the united states. they think that genetically engineered crops are going to feed the world it's going to end and world hunger those are the very same schemas that made about the green revolution forty years ago. in fact patenting g.m.o. seeds has allowed for a culture of secrecy around research that threatens the transparency of public programs and reduces access to genetic resources. so very big it's all over the well to have patents on food because you need to eat each country

before you're even communicating or having any army or anything else and they want to how to write these as soon as somebody eats you know well so it's a real a why are genetically modified crops are still confined to a handful of countries with highly industrialized export oriented agricultural sectors. nearly ninety percent of the area planted to g.m. crops in two thousand and seven was found in just six countries. one country alone the united states plants over fifty percent of the world's g.m. crops they are those four c. around the well that make sixty percent of the market which i'll show you on my ease rice and wheat. they are already. so young my ease that makes eighty percent of the gym most today is they put their hands. we rides and

a couple of orders. which is important to your country then they have the right to say who knows what and who say this was wrong well. patenting severely limits independent research information sharing among land grant institutions and farmers ability to save seeds it drives up prices dramatically and encourages monocultures that are susceptible to disease in medically engineering is one tool in the toolkit of an industrial food model that moves us toward centralization. and so that's one of the reasons i object to this we need to be moving towards decentralization the food system and more diverse food production. the united nations world bank report estimates that canola farmers in canada and corn farmers in the united states lose a combined six hundred million dollars

a year to european g.m.o. free markets conventional farmers may find some markets close to them because their chili is genetically engineering but i think it may ruin all the markets for their advantage growers also the north american free trade act would force and i miss you to share its technology with america's competitors if they develop this chip this connection to their choice seed they don't have to go to mexico they can take the seed and go to mexico mexico peru or china or wherever else and so it's not going to benefit the new the new mexico farmers it whatever technology they can adopt or competitors can adopt so i'm not sure how this is going to solve their problems. resistance to chemically intensive genetically modified foods is increasing worldwide including bans labeling requirements and companies advertising their foods as g.m.o. free.

consumer demand for g.m.o. products fifteen years after their introduction is still virtually nonexistent my particular view is that the industrial model of agriculture is not long for this world that we we can't continue going down this road because it's too energy intensive it destroys biodiversity not only while by allah versity but also cultivated biodiversity and it concentrates too much power in the hands of too few companies most of the farmers that i. was getting methods to try. utilize small thoughts and we were to develop a chip which your children would be much their chances are much more amenable to sort of back the farming. farming happens in mexico and south america now chilies and other location so i think we need to do better job care of

small farmers mexico what's happened over the years as each new technology has been developed farmers have had to adopt that technology in order to reduce costs and increase eels so that they can still make money in the more of course the more they increase yields the more production goes up which reduces prices which makes it more imperative for them to reduce reduce costs and increase yields so it's a treadmill they can't get off they have to adopt all these technologies and they have to go into debt to buy all these technologies we can give them a crop that allows them to far more sustainable ie the overriding principle of my research program is to. sustainability of production allowed chili growers to maintain high yields do so in a sustainable manner so they can continue that in the future fine for me sustainability. sustainability means being able to maintain production in the future so your glasses are resistant. which will. we can do

everything about we will advance that that's what i heard. there are natural selection will encourage development it's how do you call it life is a sewage system. that's a great question people. people often say oh you're still putting your chemical. sustainability the way we produce our food now is. highly reliant on machines and chemicals and glyphosate resistance is one trait. that can greatly increase sustainability and now when you use the glaive resistant crop you're still spraying in herbicide in the field you're still spraying life to say it but what you're not doing is

spraying the other herbicides that you used to do life to say it replaces the other herbicides. initially life is a tolerant g.m.o. crops did enable a decrease in herbicide use but as we'd resistance grows farmers poor ever morgue life is eight and predictably return to traditional herbicides like paraquat di quat and actress jean herbicides are using them now if you're going to select and that's if we. manage their use appropriately and get as much as we can out of them and whether it's glad to say don't engineered crops or any other beside on a conventional crop. life is a tolerant crops have increased pesticide use by three hundred eighty three million pounds forty six percent of the total increase occurred in the years two thousand and seven and two thousand and eight. i'm not aware past the side use going up johnson grass is an extremely damaging perennial and considered one of the worst

weeds in the world. life is a resistant johnson grass is nearly impossible to control it's already in new mexico it's one way to look at transfer of resistance into chile as the necessary step in this constant battle that we have to do against pests that's that's based on a particular paradigm in a particular worldview that we're kind of out war with insects and we and. that's a totally different paradigm than the paradigm of an era ecological prochoice in which we understand natural systems in the way in which they interact and so we practice various kinds of management strategies to. to manage pests and weeds knowing that will never eliminate them completely but keeping them managed at a level that we can still make a living without having to pour lots of chemicals on the planet herbicide resistance and a naturally occurring weed population is particularly significant because it could

threaten the sustainable use of glasses a resistant crop technology from the proceedings of the national academy of sciences december two thousand and nine. in two thousand and eight g.e. crops required over twenty six percent more pounds of pesticides per acre than acres planted to conventional varieties. you know you can generic this kind of a distraction i think and it's misleading i think we need to look at research that's going to reduce application of synthetic chemicals so developing resistance to application of a chemical i think is the last thing we should be doing really honestly. apple for example much of its manufacturing is dying on in the united states so i don't see why the american senators would be so concerned about it paying or not paying taxes because ultimately it's not going to get any share of that and that's

happening already in the. course we're talking here about how do you share the taxes provided there are tax is a problem today there's nothing to share because we have created these rigi where these companies don't pay tax.

i would rather question should people be busy he's a follower instead of speaking on their behalf and that's why you can find mark go larry king now right here on r.t. question more.

on our face in my. life for. a week of nationwide outrage in the u.s. with protests in dozens of cities against the acquittal of george zimmerman a florida neighborhood watch volunteer who was charged with murdering an armed black teenager. russian opposition activist aleksei not only is bail today after being given a five year jail term for embezzlement and a closely watched trial that has sparked mass rallies and his support on the streets of moscow. also this week turkey is accused of letting israel used a military base to launch a recent air strike on syria and unconfirmed reports but ankara denies the allegation. and backers of egypt's ousted president mohamed morsy clash with opponents at mass rallies for.