In lieu of the recently proposed $12B soybean farming subsidy to offset the effects of US tariffs, although generous – why not invest in converting to organic and non-GMO farming? Heck, make Monsanto a partner to avoid its invariable lobbying against the prospect.
Today, Europe doesn’t want to import US agricultural imports – namely soybeans, even if it’s tariff-free per President Trump. Pundits are quick to react to a Europe falsely characterized as acting out of malice for Trump or to the US approach to normalizing tariffs and trade deals. This is simply not the reason why soybeans are legumes non-grata overseas, even in Italy.
This news reporting earns the “fake news” label as it fails to communicate the root cause of the EU’s actions and its understandable concerns for the health of it’s citizens. The underlying issue with importing US agriculture is that the majority of our products are genetically modified (GMO). They are also laden with known carcinogenic pesticides such as Round-up which contains the killer glyphosate. Glyphosate was nearly banned in Europe because of the damage it does to living organisms that will not be so much s alive or enjoying a quality of life after repeated exposure. After a contentious battle in 2017, the EU voted to allow use for five more years despite the 1.3M signatures demanding it be banned. It is any wonder the EU declined to import US soybeans, of which ~80% are GMO? Quite frankly, this is another example of the US government’s support of big business over the health of its residents by allowing Monsanto to compromise people over profits. Profits over safety as lobbied by corporations. And this isn’t the first time.
Remember when cigarettes were touted as safe and even good for you? Asbestos was a savior for fireproofing until those exposed to it started dying of lung cancer. Saccharin was another miracle indulgence calorie counting until it was linked to cancer. The list continues, including:
| Deemed Safe | On The Market Until… | Proven Deadly |
| Hydrogenated / Partially Hydrogenated Oil | Late 1950s – June 2018 | Direct contributor to heart disease and high cholesterol. |
| Flame Retardents (polybrominated diphenyl ethers or PBDEs), includes use on mattresses | Still in use in some US states. | Hormone disruption and carcinogenic |
| Bisphenol A (BPA) | 2012, after manufacturers of these products had already stopped their use of BPA. | Heart disease, various kinds of cancer, hormone disruption, behavioral disorders and more |
| Thalidomide | 1960s | Pregnant women who first took the drug for morning sickness in the late 1950s gave birth to children with malformed or missing limbs |
| Deadly, but Still in Use (just to name a very few) |
| Nitrites |
| Preservatives |
| Nutri-Sweet |
| Lead Faucets |
| Round-up pesticide |
Farmers are caught in an unbreakable cycle perpetuated by Monsanto who produces GMO seeds and Round-up (and generated $3M last year from soybean-specific seeds alone). Ironically, the seeds were modified so they could withstand being bombarded by Round-up to kill bugs. The GMO aspect is widely-believed to be unhealthy to the human body let alone the bombardment of chemical pesticides. Organic farming successfully produces soybeans with neither GMO seeds nor dangerous, manufactured chemicals. Even non-GMO production negates one side of this comprised health equation by using conventional, un-altered seeds. They do, however, use manufactured chemicals vs organic growers who subtract the latter part of the problem by using organic based control methods, summing up to a healthy product.
Why doesn’t the US Government invest in converting farms to organic production? Even if they worked with Monsanto to achieve this objective, the biggest obstacle would become a potential partner that could replace death revenues with healthy, organic proceeds. As of now, farmers are not allowed to re-use GMO seeds from crops lest Monsanto will destroy their farming livelihood. It has a model the mandates re-purchase of seeds every year despite the natural production of residual seeds from a crop. These seeds must be destroyed and new ones purchased.
Crop circling back to the issue at hand, the proposed $12B bail out, aka “subsidies” to farms for the impact of tariffs clearly demonstrates that capital is available for investing in farms. This capital should be used to convert, not cover-up, the lack of European appetites for US lab-altered soybeans . By investing in sustainable, repeatable, scalable and healthy organic farming – we would increase the demand for US agri-products exponentially. Forget that its healthier. Safer. More ethical. Forget that Monsanto would have to be onboard so as not to lose existing revenues generated by its mad-science seeds, strong-arming farmers, and the distribution of chemical pesticides. It’s simply smart business. And that’s an offer the US can’t afford to refuse.
