Yet, continued structural adjustment programmes and the global liberalization of trade have contributed to ever increasing hunger and poverty in the world. The opening of developing country economies to cheaper agricultural and food imports from developed countries has led to the creation of landless peasants, migration to cities, rising unemployment rates and increased poverty and hunger. At the same time, globalization has resulted in a few corporations largely controlling the agro-industrial food system. Control of seeds and promotion of farming techniques based on chemicals increasingly places small farmers, genetic diversity and sustainability at risk. GE is not the panacea touted by its proponents.
Huge questions loom about safety, testing, regulations and the long-term benefit.
We don't question the need for safety regulations for everything from pyjamas and toys, to driving our cars, yet there has been unprecedented resistance to any regulation of genetically engineered organisms. GE is not a solution to world hunger. Lack of food is not the underlying cause of world hunger. It is lack of money to buy food, lack of access to land or water to grow food, inequitable food distribution, and politics. The push to embrace GE has not only a direct impact on farmers, consumers, our food supply and the environment in the developing world but also right here at home in Canada.