It told how, after receiving a Greenpeace fax, Novartis, the big Swiss drug and biochemicals company, instantly agreed to stop using genetically engineered strains of corn and soybeans in its Gerber baby food line.
Biotechnology is already everywhere.
Coke has been using high-fructose corn sweetener made from genetically modified corn for years. Half of the soybean fields in the U.S., the world's largest producer, are planted with genetically modified seeds. No one has sprouted wings. But Greenpeace needs a bogeyman, and biotech promises to be a fund-raising bogeyman for decades to come. Novartis, which has its own bioengineering businesses, probably should have weighed the long-run costs before launching its preemptive surrender.