Monsanto & Biotech Lobby Brainwash Teachers

Agriscience Bus Takes Teachers For a Ride
By Jane Garrison, Conscious Choice (Chicago, Illinois)
<www.consciouschoice.com>
November 19, 2003

When the topic of genetically modified foods came up in the teachers' lounge
one day, my friend Tom (not his real name) chimed in, "It's like when
nectarines were made from peaches and plums." He said he had learned this on
the "Agriscience Bus."

Having a working knowledge of genetically modified foods and knowing the
fallacy of that analogy, I asked other previous Agriscience Bus participants
about it. They all had the same impression, saying things like, "The course
really opened my eyes to biotechnology" and "Some important biotech research
is making big differences in improving the world's food supply." I asked
whether any fellow course participants had brought up concerns over
genetically modified organisms (GMOs). "Well, no," they answered, "it's hard
to know what to ask when a geneticist is talking."

I took this as a sign that it was my time to take the Agriscience Bus tour.

Getting to the Kids via the Teachers

I first heard of "Teachers on an Agriscience Bus" about 12 years ago.
Teachers in area school districts spend three days of their summer traveling
to farms and other agriculture-related businesses west of Chicago.

The Agriscience Bus is an appealing three-day summer course offering guided
tours of various agribusiness venues in a travel bus, comfortable overnight
accommodations, generous meals, and the chance to hang out with colleagues.
It's fully sponsored by local ag organizations and free to the teachers
(with college and professional credit available for a tuition fee).

At our first meeting we were showered with stacks of class materials from
every area ag-related organization I could imagine - from the Illinois Pork
Producers Association to the DuPage County Farm Bureau. We received
beautiful posters for our classrooms, lesson plan ideas, and free samples.

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Opening Message of the "Biotechnology Basics Activity Book"

Hi Kids,

This is an activity book for young people like you about biotechnology - a
really neat topic. Why is it such a neat topic? Because biotechnology is
helping to improve the health of the Earth and the people who call it home.
In this book, you will take a closer look at biotechnology. You will see
that biotechnology is being used to figure out how to: 1) grow more food; 2)
help the environment; and 3) grow more nutritious food that improves our
health. As you work through the puzzles in this book, you will learn more
about biotechnology and all of the wonderful ways it can help people live
better lives in a healthier world.

Have Fun!

- sponsored by the Council For Biotechnology Information, an industry trade
group

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Included among these materials were copies of the AgMag and the
Biotechnology Activity Book - provided by Monsanto and the Council for
Biotechnology Information and geared to children. Nothing aggravates me more
than the assumption that teachers of children are willing and blind
messengers of anything put in front of them. Having said that, these
materials include statements such as, "My teacher says biotechnology is
helping scientists make edible medicine!" and "Seeds with special qualities
could allow farmers to grow plants that are more nutritious, more resistant
to pests, and more productive."

I also learned at the meeting that 641 area teachers have participated in
the Agriscience Bus since the course tour started in 1991. Creation of this
teacher "education" was based on a perceived need for agricultural literacy
among young school students - and it was decided the best way to reach the
students was through teachers.

Several highly regarded and dedicated area farmers had been involved in the
development of this bus tour program. So, I asked myself, could this really
be a "corporate conspiracy"? Good people had put it together. Nonetheless,
literally, tens of thousands of kids were getting its message as a result of
this teacher education program.

No Room for Dissent

Nearly all of the tour stops focused on "advanced technological aspects" of
the agriculture industry - which meant biotechnology and factory farms.

Still, it didn't come as a surprise to me that 80 percent of the grain fed
to most hogs is genetically modified or that the mass production of meat
means that a sow typically produces five artificially inseminated litters of
8-11 pigs before her productivity declines.

Neither was I surprised that the farmers I met are thoughtful and
intelligent people of high character who possess a sense of responsibility
for the population as well as for the environment. I already knew these
things.

The surprise came on the bus. Our instructor was a friendly guy who directs
our county's farm bureau. His blend of agriculture and political science
experience made him perfect for his job. Our tight schedule didn't allow
much time for group discussions so he suggested that we talk together on the
bus. Yet when I indicated that I would like to discuss the controversy over
genetically modified crops, the friendliness switched to off. He snapped,
"Not on this bus. Not while we're paying for it. That's not on the
syllabus."

So much for post-graduate course work that engages in lively debate! It was
clear that the only way we teachers were going to hear the arguments against
GMOs was if they were discussed "off the bus." Fat chance. Monsanto was our
next stop.

Our tour of Monsanto's research facility began with a "wagon ride" out to
the test soybean fields. Our guide, a charming Brazilian scientist sang the
praises of "Roundup Ready" soybeans and Bt (GMO) corn. "Farmers can now
spend their summers in Florida instead of in their fields pulling weeds," he
happily exclaimed.

When I asked how non-GMO farmers keep their fields from being contaminated
by GMO pollen, his explanation stressed the technology's approval by the
U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency (how
could the government be wrong?!). He admitted that 1-2 percent of pollen
could conceivably make its way to neighboring plants - but that planting 15
days after the GMO crops are planted helps alleviate the chances of
contamination.

A more formal presentation followed, presented by a plaid shirt-clad
geneticist who attempted to approach the GMO controversy head-on, relating
its nickname of "Frankenfood" with a chuckle and pointing out that the
European refusal to legalize GMOs was purely political and economic
manipulation intended to drive down U.S. GMO prices. One teacher asked about
the monarch butterfly research and he discredited it as "poorly planned and
irrelevant...that test did not take into account the timing of monarchs'
milkweed diet with the GMO plants' pollen dispersal." Another teacher
brought up the StarLink/Taco Bell issue, and his explanation emphasized the
"very small" probability that GMO corn could cause a problem.

"So what's the big controversy?" queried one teacher.

"People don't like the idea that there are food products that have DNA from
another organism," he replied. "There is no concern that human bodies cannot
break down the Bt [GMOS]."

The polite side of me was saying, "Stay in your seat, Jane." But the "know
thyself" side made me stand up. I was aware of the lack of research pointing
to human safety and, in a bold move, I piped up to make this point citing
Monsanto's "Right to Know" safety sign, prominently displayed on the wall of
the pole barn in which we were seated.

Our speaker acknowledged that long-term effects on health and the
environment are not known and that Monsanto directs millions of dollars
toward lobbying the Food and Drug Administration to prevent the labeling of
GMO foods. I told him that it's unconscionable that the public is serving as
guinea pigs in this giant human experiment, and we have no idea how GMOs
will effect us, our children, our grandchildren, and ecosystems.

There was no response from our speaker; there was no response from the
audience.

Later, a teacher quietly suggested that I shop at Whole Foods Market.
Another teacher said she was interested in more information about GMOs and a
friend teasingly called me "gutsy." My bus partner, a young social sciences
teacher of like mind, quietly thanked me. On the other hand, our bus guide
remarked that I didn't have to "put down" our host; that "we do the best we
can with what we have." And later, in a course evaluation a participant
wrote, "Some teachers are clueless as to proper behavior."

However, in that same evaluation, someone suggested a trip to an organic
farm and another pointed out the importance of discussing the ethics of
biotechnology, neither of which had been addressed during the tour.

The last stop of that day was an award-winning feedlot farm, on which
hundreds of cattle are fed until ready for market. This business - run by a
respected, close-knit local family - is state-of-the-art with everything
from Global Positioning Satellite on its tractors to ultrasound testing for
predicting optimum cattle size for quality cuts of meat.

The impact of consumer demand was glaringly clear on this factory farm -
Holstein cattle, known as dairy cattle, are now raised and butchered for
beef because Wal-Mart customers are scrambling for the unique shape of their
rib eyes. The farm grows a field of non-GMO soybeans to sell to the European
market. "This is a capitalist country and we're in the business of making
food for people," explained one of the farmers. "If consumers demand
something - and we can provide it safely and legally while making a profit -
we'll produce it."

The Media Package

The tour served to show that the power of the biotech industry and industry
giants such as Monsanto is far-reaching - and that local Chicago media play
a big part in that. For instance, one of our tour stops was at WGN-AM, known
for its local color and syndicated farm reports and owned by the Chicago
Tribune Company. On our last day, we met the two gentlemen with memorable
voices who present WGN's daily farm reports, broadcast nationwide. A teacher
asked, "What are some of the most controversial issues facing agriculture
today?"

"Some amazing and wonderful things are being done with biotechnology," one
of the reporters replied. "Most of the protests are emotion-based; you don't
hear much concern in the U.S. In fact, the most recent protest had only
about 600 people. That's compared to how many million U.S. citizens who have
no problem with it?"

Is there a chance that Monsanto is a WGN client?

One of the stated objectives of the three-day tour is "to provide relevant
teaching and curriculum materials that be integrated into various subject
matter disciplines."

It could be a tough row to hoe if a teacher comes away not wanting to
integrate the ideas espoused during the Agriscience Bus tour. Why?
Participating teachers must make this commitment: "ALL staff will be
required to develop curriculum materials using information obtained from the
trip program."
Jane Garrison, mother of two, teaches fourth grade in a west Chicago suburb.