“Open Sesame” shows the importance of saving heirloom
and open-pollination seeds, which are threatened by
agrichemical monopolies, GMOs, and gene patenting
More than 93 percent of the variety in our food seeds
has been lost as large multi-national corporations have
swallowed up smaller seed suppliers
Saving your own seeds, as well as obtaining seeds from
seed swaps and exchanges, can help preserve what
precious diversity remains
By Dr. Mercola
The seed saving movement is growing. Communities are banding
together to save and share heirloom and open pollination seeds that
are in danger of disappearing off the face of the Earth as a result
of industrialized agriculture and multinational corporations that
control the majority of our seed supply.
The documentary "Open Sesame: The Story of Seeds" by M. Sean
Kaminsky seeks to inspire people about the importance of seed
saving—and its urgency.1
When you save seeds, you're joining a chain of farmers,
gardeners, and seed enthusiasts that dates back to the Stone Age—our
civilization literally arose due to seed saving. Early humans
selected the best wild plants with which to feed themselves, and
passed those varieties along to others by saving and sharing seeds.
Seeds are the foundation of life, from fruits and vegetables to
grain and livestock feed—without them, we have no food. It's
estimated that upwards of 90 percent of our caloric intake directly
or indirectly comes from seeds.
Age-old heirloom varieties are disappearing at an alarming
rate—90 percent of the crop varieties grown 100 years ago are
already gone. The Millennium Seed Bank Partnership estimates that
60,000 to 100,000 plant species are in danger of
extinction.2
Why Seed Saving Is So Important
Four of the most important reasons to save seeds are the
following:3
Seed Security: By saving your seeds,
you control your seed and therefore your food supply—you
aren't depending on seed stores or catalogs for difficult to
find seed.
Hundreds of excellent plant varieties have been discontinued
as big corporations have consolidated the seed industry and
focused on more profitable varieties. Half of the vegetables
grown today have no commercial sources—you have to get them
through seed trades.4
Regional Adaptation: Most commercially
available seed has been selected because it performs fairly well
across the entire country if given
synthetic fertilizers.
But when you save seed from your own best performing plants,
on your land and in your own ecosystem, you gradually develop
varieties better adapted to your own soil, climate, and growing
conditions.
Consistent Quality: Large seed suppliers
rarely "rogue" the fields to pull out inferior or off-type
plants, so the open-pollinated (OP) seeds they sell have
inferior specimens in the mix.
You can select your own seed for uniformity and quality. You
can control the gene pool for optimal germination, ripening
time, flavor, storage, disease resistance, color, etc. After a
few seasons, more and more of your plants will have all of your
personally selected traits.
Preserving Your Heritage and Biodiversity:
Today multinational corporations select seed varieties according
to their own financial interests; they control 82 percent of the
world's seed market, which includes 75 percent of the vegetable
seed market. It's up to small farmers and home gardeners to
preserve thousands of years of biodiversity.
Understanding Open-Pollinated, Heirloom, and Hybrid Seeds
As a gardener, one of your more important decisions is whether to
choose open-pollinated, hybrid, or heirloom seed varieties—but which
are best?
According to Seed Savers,5
for seed saving purposes, the most significant distinction among
these types is saving true-to-type seed from open-pollinated and
heirloom varieties, and avoiding hybrids. Open-pollination seeds are
pollinated by insects, birds, humans, wind or other natural
mechanisms.
"Because there are no restrictions on the flow of pollen
between individuals, open-pollinated plants are more genetically
diverse. This can cause a greater amount of variation within
plant populations, which allows plants to slowly adapt to local
growing conditions and climate year-to-year.
As long as pollen is not shared between different
varieties within the same species, then the seed produced will
remain true-to-type, year after year."
An heirloom variety is a plant that has a history of being passed
down multiple generations within a family or a community. An
heirloom variety is by definition open-pollinated, but not all
open-pollinated plants are heirlooms.
Hybridization is a controlled method of pollination in which the
pollen of two different species or varieties is crossed (usually by
human intervention, although it can happen in nature), usually from
a desire to breed in a particular trait. Hybrids are typically
unstable and less vigorous, producing fewer of those desirable
traits with each passing year.
However, hybrid seeds can be stabilized by open-pollination—by
growing, selecting and saving the seeds over many seasons.
Choosing open-pollinated and heirloom seeds helps conserve
genetic diversity and prevents the loss of unique varieties,
including the ones that contribute to our long-term survival because
of special hardiness and disease resistance traits. Biodiversity is
our only insurance in times of vulnerability, such as when facing
climate change.
Our Loss of Seed Diversity Is Shocking
In 80 years (between 1903 and 1983), we lost 93 percent of the
variety in our food seeds. According to Rural Advancement Foundation
International:7
We went from 497 varieties of lettuce to 36
We went from 288 varieties of beets to 17
We went from 307 varieties of sweet corn to 12
Even the popular heirloom
tomato has taken an enormous hit, having lost at least 80
percent of its diversity over the last century. Even more tragic is
the fact that a lot of these precious plants are being replaced by
patented genetically engineered (GE) varieties.
The National Geographic infographic below shows how many
varieties of fruits and vegetables appear to be nearing extinction.8
This data is already more than 30 years old, so the statistics may
be even more grim today.
The Disastrous Consequences of Patenting Life
Traditionally, seeds have been saved and shared between farmers
from one season to the next. Farmers rarely ever had to buy new
seed. Nature, when left alone, provides you with the means to
propagate the next harvest in a never-ending cycle. Valuable
heirlooms have been replaced by massive expanses of genetically
engineered (GE) crops. According to the USDA, 94 percent of US soy
and 88 percent of US corn are now genetically engineered (GE).
It's estimated that, since 1970, 20,000 seed companies have been
swallowed up by mega-corporations. In 2005, Monsanto bought the
world's largest fruit and vegetable seed company, Seminis, for $1.4
billion. Just four agrichemical companies now own 43 percent of the
world's commercial seed supply, and 10 multinational corporations
hold 65 percent of global commercial seed for major crops.9
Many farmers are now dependent on patented GE seeds and must buy
them every year from companies like Monsanto. Saving such seeds is
illegal because it'sconsidered patent infringement.
Farmers don't buy seed anymore—they essentially buy a license to
use the seed for a short period of time—typically one season. It's
more of a lease, or a "technology use agreement." For 200 years, the
patenting of life was prohibited, especially with respect to foods.
But all of that changed in 1978 with the first patent of a living
organism, an oil-eating microbe, which opened the proverbial
floodgates.
According to the film, one of Monsanto's proxies has a patent
claiming 463,173 separate plant genes! Patenting of life forms was
never approved by Congress or the American public, but as far as the
GMO industry is concerned, they own a gene wherever it ends up
and however it gets there. The trail of destruction left by GE seeds
isn't limited to the West—Indian farmers have been coerced into
using them, with completely disastrous consequences.
GE Seeds Responsible for 250,000 Farmer Suicides
More than a quarter of a million Indian farmers have committed
suicide over the past 16 years, since the introduction of GE
seed. These crops have failed (especially Bt cotton), leaving them
financially ruined. Bt cotton is much more expensive than
traditional cotton seed, requires more water and
pesticides, and has failed to produce the increased crop yields
promised by Monsanto.
India's government has largely abandoned small farmers,
discontinuing support programs and failing to address factors such
as lack of rural credit and access to irrigation, among others, and
new government programs have barely scratched the surface of this
crisis, which results in one farmer committing suicide every 30
minutes, typically by ingesting pesticides like Roundup.
On a side note, concerns over glyphosate's toxicity are finally
starting to be taken seriously. The US EPA recently announced10
US regulators may start testing for glyphosate residues on food in
the near future. While thousands of foods are tested for about 400
different pesticides each year, glyphosate is not on that list
simply because it's been thought to be safe.
While that's good news, it's worth noting that the EPA raised the
allowable limits for glyphosate in food in 2013, and the
allowable levels may be too high to protect human health, based on
mounting research. Root and tuber vegetables (with the exception of
sugar) got one of the largest boosts, with allowable residue limits
being raised from 0.2 ppm to 6.0 ppm.
Meanwhile, malformations in frog and chicken embryos have been
documented at 2.03 ppm of glyphosate.11
And, as reported by the Institute for Science in Society:12
"The amount of allowable glyphosate in oilseed crops
(except for canola and soy) went up from 20 ppm to 40 ppm,
100,000 times the amount needed to induce breast cancer cells."
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are a serious threat to our
environment and our health. Although the US has the strictest food
safety laws in the world governing new additives, the
FDA has allowed GMOs to evade those laws, as Steven Druker
explains in this recent interview. The sole purported legal basis
for the marketing of GE foods in the US is the FDA's claim that
they're "Generally Recognized as Safe" (GRAS)—a claim that is
actually fraudulent. Documents released as a result of a lawsuit
against the FDA reveal that the agency's scientists warned superiors
about the extraordinary risks of GE foods—but their warnings were
spurned and covered up.
According to the law, no GE food can qualify as GRAS unless there
is overwhelming consensus about its safety within the scientific
community, and that consensus cannot be based on hypotheses or
speculation—it must be based on solid evidence. In the case of GE
foods, there is no such evidence. FDA's own files contain the
admission that they didn't have any technical evidence upon which to
base their presumption that GE foods are GRAS.
On January 24, 2015 a statement signed by 300 scientists was
published in a peer-reviewed journal,13
asserting that there is no scientific consensus about the safety of
GE foods, which confirms that they are on the US market illegally.
The American Academy of Environmental Medicine wrote, "There is more
than a casual association between GE foods and adverse health
effects." They go on to cite specific scientific evidence pointing
to potential organ damage from GE foods (liver, kidney, spleen, and
GI system), accelerated aging, immune dysregulation, infertility...
and the list goes on and on.14
Support Seed Diversity by Ditching GE Food
As you often hear me say, one of your greatest powers is your
pocketbook. You can take back control over our food supply with the
choices you make about the foods you eat, the seeds you plant, and
the products you use. Here are a few suggestions:
Stop buying non-organic processed foods. Instead, build your
diet around whole, unprocessed foods, especially raw fruits and
vegetables, and healthy fats from
coconut oil,
avocados,
organic pastured meat, dairy, and eggs, and
raw nuts
Buy most of your foods from your local farmer's market and
organic farms
Cook most or all your meals at home using whole, organic
ingredients
Frequent restaurants that serve organic, cooked-from-scratch
local food. Many restaurants, especially chain restaurants, use
processed foods for their meals (Chipotlé
is a rare exception)
Buy only organic, open-pollinated, and heirloom seeds for
your garden, which applies to both decorative plants and
edibles; they're obtainable from seed swaps, seed libraries, and
exchanges (see next section for sources)
Boycott all lawn and garden chemicals (fertilizers,
pesticides, etc.) unless they are "OMRI Approved," which means
they're allowed in organic production. If you use a lawn
service, make sure they're using OMRI Approved products as well
Join the Organic Consumers Association's
new campaign, "Buy Organic Brands that Support Your Right to
Know"
Seed Saving Resources
If you want to begin saving your own seeds, there are four basic
steps: Choosing the right plants, collecting their seeds, cleaning
the seeds and storing them appropriately.15
Below are some excellent seed saving resources, as well as
suggestions for where to purchase open-pollinated and heirloom
seeds.
Seed to Seed: Seed Saving Techniques for
Vegetable Gardeners by Suzanne Ashworth (March
2002) is an excellent and widely cited book about seed saving
Seed Savers
Exchange: Organization whose mission is to promote
saving and sharing of heirloom seeds and plants
SeedSave.org:
Online seed school with free downloadable book about
the basics of seed saving
Hudson Valley
Seed Library: Featured in the
movie, Hudson is much more than a library—it's also a place
where you can order heirloom seed
Mother Earth News article16
about their picks for top 15 vegetable seed companies
What Are GMOs?
From April 19th through April 25th we launch GMO Awareness Week.
We set aside an entire week dedicated to providing you with
information on GMOs and labeling initiatives.
GMOs are a product of genetic engineering, meaning their genetic
makeup has been altered to induce a variety of “unique” traits to
crops, such as making them drought-resistant or giving them “more
nutrients.” GMO proponents claim that genetic engineering is “safe
and beneficial,” and that it advances the agricultural industry.
They also say that GMOs help ensure the global food supply and
sustainability. But is there any truth to these claims? I believe
not. For years, I've stated the belief that GMOs pose one of the
greatest threats to life on the planet. Genetic engineering is NOT
the safe and beneficial technology that it is touted to be.
Help Support GMO Labeling
The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA)—Monsanto’s Evil
Twin—is pulling out all the stops to keep you in the dark about
what’s in your food. For nearly two decades, Monsanto and corporate
agribusiness have exercised near-dictatorial control over American
agriculture. For example, Monsanto has made many claims that
glyphosate in Roundup is harmless to animals and humans. However,
recently the World Health Organization (WHO) had their research team
test glyphosate and have labeled it a probable carcinogen.
Public opinion around the biotech industry's contamination of our
food supply and destruction of our environment has reached the
tipping point. We're fighting back. That's why I was the first to
push for GMO labeling. I donated a significant sum to the first
ballot initiative in California in 2012, which inspired others to
donate to the campaign as well. We technically "lost the vote, but
we are winning the war, as these labeling initiatives have raised a
considerable amount of public awareness.
The insanity has gone far enough, which is why I encourage you to
boycott every single product owned by members of the GMA, including
natural and organic brands. More than 80 percent of our support
comes from individual consumers like you, who understand that real
change comes from the grassroots.
Thankfully, we have organizations like the Organic Consumers
Association (OCA) to fight back against these junk food
manufacturers, pesticide producers, and corporate giants.
Together, Let's Help OCA Get The Funding They Deserve
Let’s Help OCA get the funding it deserves. I have found very few
organizations who are as effective and efficient as OCA. It’s a
public interest organization dedicated to promoting health justice
and sustainability. A central focus of the OCA is building a
healthy, equitable, and sustainable system of food production and
consumption. That's why I'm proud to announce I will be matching
donations up to $250,000 this week.
Please make a donation to help OCA fight for GMO labeling.
Copyright 1997- 2015 Dr. Joseph Mercola. All Rights Reserved.