by Brenda Baletti, Ph.D., Childrens Health Defense:
A plan by major agrochemical companies to develop genetically engineered (GE) soil microbes, including bacteria and fungi, to act as pesticides and fertilizers is raising concerns about the unknown and potentially disastrous risks associated with the new organisms, according to a report published Tuesday by Friends of the Earth.
Bayer-Monsanto, Syngenta and BASF are among the chemical giants known to be developing the microbes which, according to the report, are fundamentally different from the already controversial genetically modified organisms (GMOs) that have existed for decades.
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GE microbes are living organisms that share their genetic material easily with other species and travel vast distances in the wind. And because they are microscopic, their numbers are vast.
“An application of GE bacteria could release approximately 3 trillion genetically modified organisms every half an acre — that’s about how many GE corn plants there are in the entire U.S.,” said Dana Perls, food and technology manager at Friends of the Earth, in a press release.
Introducing GE microbes into agriculture represents an “unprecedented open air genetic experiment,” the report says. “The scale of release is far larger, and the odds of containment are far smaller than for other GE crops.”
Scientists understand the role and function of less than 1 percent of the billions of existing species of microbes or “biologicals.”
Yet the race is on by biotech and agrochemical companies to develop, modify and patent new microbes to capture a share of the biologicals market, which is set to triple in value to $29.31 billion by 2029.
At least two GE microbes, Pivot Bio’s Proven and BASF’s Poncho Votivo seed treatments, are already being used by U.S. farmers on millions of acres of farmland.
“GMO companies are putting GM microbes into the open environment, yet no one has the first idea of what risks this might present,” Claire Robinson, co-director of GMWatch told The Defender. “And there is absolutely no need to take these risks and no proof that the GM microbes actually work in the way that’s claimed.”
“The latest science shows that engineering organisms can result in unintended genetic mishaps,” said Kendra Klein, Ph.D., deputy director for science at Friends of the Earth and author of the report. “And there are rare but potentially disastrous risks of creating an invasive species or novel human pathogen.”
Klein added, “The release of GE microbes across millions of acres of farmland is an open-air genetic experiment that may have irreversible consequences. Once they are released, GE microbes cannot be recalled.”
The report provides a historical context for understanding the new technology, details a number of future trends and potential concerns and makes urgent policy recommendations for assessing and regulating GE microbes.
Big ag: Regenerative agricultural leaders ‘feeding the world’?
In recent years, growing numbers of scientists and farmers have studied the relationship between the microbiome, which is the aggregate of microbes living in the soil, and soil health.
These tiny microorganisms play an outsized role in healthy plant growth, building soil structure, mobilizing nutrients, providing crops with immunity to pests and diseases, and fixing carbon and nitrogen. And they form symbiotic relationships with other species, like plants.
With that knowledge, regenerative agriculture has emerged as a movement focused on improving soil health, plant health and ecosystem health to counter the damage done by industrial agriculture and build a more resilient system.
Regenerative farmer Gail Fuller explained the philosophy behind his farming practices. For thousands of years, Fuller said, “plants, animals and microbes lived in harmony,” but people disrupted that dynamic.
Fuller told The Defender:
“We have spent the last few thousand years trying to conquer, kill and control, all in the name of ‘feeding the masses.’ We have eroded away much of our topsoil and killed off many of the species that we thought were unimportant.
“Somewhere along the way, some farmers began to realize we had gone too far and started looking for a better way. We learned how to plant without tillage. We realized the soil was alive with microbes and we began to study and understand them. We saw what Mother Nature has been trying to show us all along. The beauty of life.
“Once we learn to quit conquering and work with nature we see life return in full force and the nutritional value of the food we grow, which has been declining for decades, begins to climb.
“When we learn to focus on life and we start working with the system (diversity of crops, cover crops, livestock, etc.) microbes and wildlife return. We can easily grow enough food without synthetic fertilizers, chemicals, GMO crops and microbes.”
As regenerative farmers like Fuller look to the microbiome to develop new forms of sustainable agriculture and recuperate key dynamic relationships in nature, other actors have recognized their potential to deliver big profits.
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