Modified Corn OK'd For Maine Farmers

WATERVILLE - After pleas from farmers on both sides of the issue, Maine’s Bureau of Pesticides Control on Friday approved the registration of corn that is genetically engineered with a natural pesticide. Maine is the last state in the country to allow the modified corn to be sold or grown.
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While dairy farmers said they needed the greater-yielding corn to maintain a competitive edge, organic growers said they feared for the health of Maine’s residents.

"This technology has been out there about a generation," testified Peggy Gannon of Stetson, "and there have been no long-term tests on humans." Gannon and others asked the Bureau of Pesticides Control to wait for approval until next spring to give the Legislature time to review new liability rules for planting genetically engineered crops.

"Maine doesn’t have this [engineered corn]. We are the only state because we’re smarter," said Andrea DeFrancesca of Franklin.

Dairy farmers, however, asked the bureau to allow them the same tools that other farmers across the country are using, saying they could save money and environmental costs by eliminating pesticide spraying and growing a bigger, disease-free crop.

The genetically engineered corn approved Friday is Bt, or Bacillus thuringiensis, corn.

Source: TruthAboutTrade
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