skin whitening products...

[David House]

Never confuse organic with fresh. Fresh fruit and veg always tastes better and if you pick it from your garden it cannot be any fresher. The plants don't know whether they are obtaining their nutrients from organic or inorganic fertilizers, so I really believe there is a huge con going on. Years ago I heard a representative of the "Soil Association" say to a trade conference that "organic food" offered supermarkets a huge profit opportunity. So they do, because of consumer ignorance. We should be much more concerned about pesticide residues than concentrating on organics, they are just a diversion.
I understand the concerns about Monsanto having too much control over the supply of seed stock but that is a separate issue of regulation and control, and something that Governments, or the UN, need to address. The fundamental point about GM is that if properly regulated and trialed it is a very important method of developing higher yielding food sources, or of bringing currently unproductive land into cultivation. I agree that in theory the world can produce the food needed without this technology but it doesn't, people are hungry right now. People who could grow enough food with the help of GM. In a warming world we simply cannot ignore this and allow those who spread scare stories to dominate the headlines. Of course there are risks, and of course there will be mistakes. I have little time for such as "Greenpeace" who seem to believe they have all the answers. Nothing worthwhile is ever done by not taking a risk. So long as it is monitored and controlled we should not fear this technology, we should embrace it, if not for ourselves then for the hungry people of our world.

[keithAngel]

The plants don't know whether they are obtaining their nutrients from organic or inorganic fertilizers, .

That may be true David but the core issue here is sustainability if you are small holding and using your animal manures to fertilise your gardens , which is still how a lot of the world feeds itself you are engaged in a self sustainable cycle and maintain the heart of your soil structure.Without needing to enter the agribusiness chain using disease resistant seeds that have evolved over Millenia.

We have had the ludicrous situation here in Europe were native seed stock is not allowed to be sold and the only way to obtain it is via seed libraries such as The Henry Doubleday Organisation.

We run great risks in reducing bio diversity and loosing Native Wisdom's in a single generation may have an as yet a catastrophic impact on future generations Nature is in a constant state of flux and our attempts to promote mono-culture disturbs this dynamic

In the third world it is not increasing dependence on machines and oil that needs to be promoted but rather Poly-culture and land access and small scale subsidies for multi-layered approaches to increased production such as niche farming (fish ponds ,beekeeping, deciduous reafforestation) running side by side with existing small holdings thus improving bio-diversity whilst maximising sustainable production.

[David House]

I don't disagree with a lot of that Keith as I think all of these things have a place in our future. "Small" holdings though cannot feed the needs of the urban poor and this is where I believe GM has its place, to enable higher yields and the use of presently under farmed areas. We do, of course, need to maintain diversity but there seems to be no conflict to me. Both approaches have their use.

That may be true David but the core issue here is sustainability if you are small holding and using your animal manures to fertilise your gardens , which is still how a lot of the world feeds itself you are engaged in a self sustainable cycle and maintain the heart of your soil structure.Without needing to enter the agribusiness chain using disease resistant seeds that have evolved over Millenia.

We have had the ludicrous situation here in Europe were native seed stock is not allowed to be sold and the only way to obtain it is via seed libraries such as The Henry Doubleday Organisation.

We run great risks in reducing bio diversity and loosing Native Wisdom's in a single generation may have an as yet a catastrophic impact on future generations Nature is in a constant state of flux and our attempts to promote mono-culture disturbs this dynamic

In the third world it is not increasing dependence on machines and oil that needs to be promoted but rather Poly-culture and land access and small scale subsidies for multi-layered approaches to increased production such as niche farming (fish ponds ,beekeeping, deciduous reafforestation) running side by side with existing small holdings thus improving bio-diversity whilst maximising sustainable production.