We're Not Ready For Genetically Modified Alfalfa

On September 2, a federal appeals court in San Francisco upheld a nationwide ban on genetically-engineered alfalfa produced by Monsanto.

This is the first time in history that an injunction has been issued against a genetically-modified, government-approved commercial crop. It is truly a momentous decision. However, it was buried among the business headlines and has not been picked up for widespread coverage by the major networks.

It is absolutely shocking that this story would not receive more attention.

The court ruling suggests that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) failed to fully test the impacts of Monsanto's "Roundup Ready" alfalfa prior to granting approval for its use throughout the United States. Without any scientific evidence, the USDA stated that "buffer zones" around organic farms would stop genetic drift from the engineered crops. Yet, after this ruling, the USDA and Monsanto conceded that the proper studies had not been conducted prior to the crop's approval.

That's right. USDA and Monsanto admitted that a handshake deal had unleashed an unstudied genetic organism into the United States' food supply. And, if you think that this is only the case for alfalfa, you should think again.

Monsanto has released several other genetically-modified organisms, including "Roundup Ready" crops, into the global food chain. The first genetically-engineered crop was soybeans, first introduced in 1996.