Got questions about the environment? Ask
Umbra.
Dear Umbra,
I'm interested in learning more about the treatment and genetic modification of
soy and how prevalent this is. I think a lot of folks choose products such as
soy milk because they think they are making a better choice for the earth, as
well as themselves. I think this is an overlapping issue and qualifies for your
help. Perhaps a slant toward educating us on the state of soy farming and
production would be an acceptable angle for you.
Cheryl
Sierra Club, San Diego Chapter
San Diego, Calif.
Dearest Cheryl,
Your wish is my command. Or maybe my wish was your command: I was hoping to get
an inquiry about the environmental impacts of soy production, and what should
show up but your letter?
As of 2004, 85 percent of the U.S. soy crop was genetically modified, accounting
for some 63.6 million acres of soybeans. The top GM soy states form a shape like
a slice of pizza in the middle of the country: from the Dakotas and the plains
states down the Mississippi River and back up into Ohio and the Michigan mitten.
Statistics for 2003 indicate that at least 55 percent of soy worldwide is now
genetically modified.
Roundup Ready soy is produced, patented, sold, and beloved by the Monsanto
Company, which also manufactures the herbicide Roundup. Roundup (glyphosate) is
a popular and effective killer of broadleaf plants. I don't know if you've seen
a soybean plant, but take my word for it: The leaves are broad. That posed a bit
of a problem for both farmers and Monsanto: glyphosate applications on soy
plants had to be timed to avoid damage to the crop, and thus were of limited
use.
The development of soy that's resistant to Roundup was a boon for farm business
and for Monsanto. Schedule and dose limitations on glyphosate spritzing have
been greatly reduced. Some would like us to believe that glyphosate spritzing
itself has been greatly reduced, that "herbicide-tolerant" soy has led
to less need for the herbicide. This is not the case. The use of Roundup and
other pesticides and herbicides on genetically modified crops in the U.S. from
2001 through 2003 increased by tens of millions of pounds compared to non-GM
conventional agriculture. Glyphosate is not a safe herbicide. It's not Agent
Orange, but nor is it orange juice. Sacrificial mice and rats have gotten
various tumors, irritated membranes, cancers, dead sperm, etc., from exposure to
Roundup.
But why must I be so negative? Certainly I can say some positive things about
soy. It's an amazing and astonishingly versatile plant. Why, it's in baby food,
oils, delicious packaged cookies, breads -- you know, rather than keep going,
I'll just point you to the Illinois
Soybean Association website, which combines two of my favorite things:
agriculture and pirates. If you don't follow that link to hear what Cap'n Soy
has to say, you still need to know that your conscious consumption of soy
products is likely a small fraction of your total consumption. Unless you eat a
completely organic diet, or make everything you eat from scratch, you are eating
genetically modified soybeans. (Check out this shopping
guide from the True Food Network for a list of GM and non-GM brands.)
I don't believe we environmentalists should be supporting genetically modified
crops at this time. (More on this in past
and future columns.) Hence, says this environmental advice columnist, our
consumption of soy should be conscientious and careful.
Ahoyly,
Umbra
Yours is to wonder why, hers is to answer (or try). Please send
Umbra any nagging question pertaining to the environment.
The claims made in this column may not reflect the views of Grist Magazine
or ENN. Neither the magazine nor the author guarantees that any advice contained
in this column is wise or safe. Please use this column at your own risk.
Umbra Fisk is Grist Research Associate II, Hardcover and Periodicals Unit,
floors 2B-4B.
Source: Grist Magazine