Dr. Vrain is a former research scientist for Agriculture Canada. It was his job as scientist of his institute to address the public and others, assuring them of the safety of genetically engineered crops and foods. Now, 10 years after his retirement, he's changed his tune.
The studies commissioned by Monsanto understandably come to the conclusion that genetically modified foods and crops are both safe for the environment and safe for people. They are commissioned by the people who want that outcome. Studies from objective researchers, however, often come to very different conclusions."In the last 10 years I have changed my position. I started paying attention to the flow of published studies coming from Europe, some from prestigious labs and published in prestigious scientific journals, that questioned the impact and safety of engineered food.
I refute the claims of the biotechnology companies that their engineered crops yield more, that they require less pesticide applications, that they have no impact on the environment and of course that they are safe to eat."
Vrain says we should take these studies seriously and demand that our governments replicate the studies rather than take the word of biotech giants like Monsanto.
Long-term feeding studies on these foods simply don't exist. We do, however, have studies that indicate disastrous outcomes in rats, where animals fed genetically engineered foods die prematurely."The Bt corn and soya plants that are now everywhere in our environment are registered as insecticides. But are these insecticidal plants regulated and have their proteins been tested for safety? Not by the federal departments in charge of food safety, not in Canada and not in the U.S."
Vrain argues that the entire paradigm of genetic engineering being used in GMO technology is flawed and based on a misunderstanding.
It's this single misunderstanding, compounded with greed, that has created plants that could be toxic to our health."Genetic engineering is 40 years old. It is based on the naive understanding of the genome based on the One Gene - one protein hypothesis of 70 years ago, that each gene codes for a single protein. The Human Genome project completed in 2002 showed that this hypothesis is wrong."
As researchers like Dr. Vrain come forward to voice their opposition to genetically modified foods, we can hope governments and consumers alike will pay attention and demand accountability from corporations like Monsanto.
And good that he is speaking out about the harmful effects of GMO's. I question why he did not come forward sooner. The harmful effects of GMO's have been known for at least a decade or more.
Why did he not make a stand with the other whistleblowers and why now, he retired 10 years ago.