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RE: BBC NEWS | Africa | Famine-hit Zambia rejects GM food aid
There's a bit more to the story that I recall when this first hit. I didn't
look at this particular report.
Zambia sells food to the EC.
The EC has placed a ban on GM foods.
Zambia is concerned that the GM food aid might "taint" their ability to
sell to the EC in the future.
What's the mantra...follow the money <sigh>.
Cheers,
Richard
At 01:02 PM 10/29/2002 -0800, Jack_Earley@RL.GOV wrote:
>Let's see. As I recall, there are about 1.2M orphans in Zambia due to AIDS.
>So risky activities are okay if they're known to result in injury, but GM
>food is not okay, because they think it might somehow result in injury.
>Somethin' wrong with this picture.
>
>Jack Earley
>Radiological Engineer
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Stewart Farber [mailto:farbersa@optonline.net]
>Sent: Tuesday, October 29, 2002 1:35 PM
>To: Radsafe
>Subject: BBC NEWS | Africa | Famine-hit Zambia rejects GM food aid
>
>
>Radsafe:
>For those interested in foolish applications of risk aversion and a
>perverted sense of applying the
>"precautionary principle" to a fear of genetically modified foods [similar
>to radiophobia among many],
>see the link below to Zambia refusing food aid to help millions of its
>citizens facing starvation. As Alf
>once quipped:
>"Dogma, dogma, dog manure"
>
>Once again, politics and fear trumps science and common sense.
>
>Stewart Farber, MS Public Health
>
>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/2371675.stm
>
> >From the BBC Story:
>Tuesday, 29 October, 2002, 12:36 GMT
>Famine-hit Zambia rejects GM food aid
>
>
>Some 14 million are at risk of famine across the region
>
>The Zambian Government has finally decided not to accept a donation of
>genetically- modified food for
>nearly three million of its people facing famine.
>
>The decision was taken after the Zambian Government despatched a team of
>scientists around the world to
>study the potential effects of importing GM crops.
>
>The food aid was initially offered by the international community to Zambia
>and five other Southern
>African countries, but President Levy Mwanawasa referred to the food as
>"poison".
>
>"In view of the current scientific uncertainty surrounding the issue...
>government has decided to base
>its decision not to accept GM foods in Zambia on the precautionary
>principle," Agriculture Minister
>Mundia Sikatana said.
>
>
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Richard L. Hess richard@richardhess.com
Glendale, CA USA http://www.richardhess.com/
Web page: folk and church music, photography, and
broadcast engineering
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