Genetically Engineered
Plant Incorporated Protectants (PIP) Crops:
Pesticides Disguised as Food
(Also referred to as Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)
Perception: PIP CROPS are brands of crops not commonly found in foods. They are nutritious and safe to eat.
Reality: PIP CROPS (Plant-Incorporated Protectant) are crops that have been genetically modified to kill insects and pests. They are registered with the EPA as PESTICIDES and have been linked to organ damage, leaky gut, and diseases, including cancer.
Key Points:
*"Insect-resistant crops, which contain genes from the soil bacterium Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) and produce insecticidal proteins, have been available for corn and cotton since 1996."
*"Currently, 85 percent of U.S. cotton acres are planted with genetically engineered, insect-resistant seeds."
Read Full Article:
Source:
United States Department of Agriculture, Recent Trends in GE Adoption. (2018, July 16). Retrieved from https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/adoption-of-genetically-engineered-crops-in-the-us/recent-trends-in-ge-adoption.aspx
Key Points:
*"Type of Pesticide: Plant-Incorporated Protectant (PIP)"
*"Uses: Field Corn"
*"Target Pest(s): European corn borer (ECB), Southwestern corn borer (SWCB), Southern cornstalk borer (SCSB), Corn earworm(CEW), Fall armyworm (FAW), Stalk borer, Lesser corn stalk borer, Sugarcane borer (SCB),Western bean cutworm (WBC),
Black cutworm, Western com rootworm (WCRW),Northern corn rootworm (NCRW),Mexican corn rootworm (MCRW
*"EPA has conditionally registered MON 89034 x TC1507 x MON 88017 x DAS-59122-7, “SmartStax,”, a new bioengineered corn seed product containing genes for two Bt PIPs active against corn rootworm (CRW and three Bt PIPs to control different corn borer pests.."
*"Monsanto and Dow have developed a new Bt corn product (SmartStax) with two Bt toxins (Cry34Ab1/Cry35Ab1 and Cry3Bb1) active against CRW. The use of multiple toxins against the same pest is termed a “pyramid.”"
*"§ 174.502 Bacillus thuringiensisCry1A.105 protein; exemption from the requirement of a tolerance."
*" Residues of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1A.105 protein in or on the food and feed commodities of corn; corn, field, flour; corn, field, forage; corn, field, grain; corn, field, grits; corn, field, meal; corn, field, refined oil; corn, field, stover; corn, sweet, forage; corn, sweet, kernel plus cob with husk removed; corn, sweet, stover; corn, pop, grain and corn, pop, stover are exempt from the requirement of a tolerance when the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1A.105 protein is used as a plant-incorporated protectant in these food and feed corn commodities."
*"MON 89034 x TC1507 x MON 88017 x DAS-59122-7 is a combined trait corn that produces lepidopteran-active and coleopteran-active Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) proteins, as well as the 5enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase protein from Agrobacterium sp. strain CP4 (CP4 EPSPS) to confer tolerance to glyphosate herbicides and PAT to confer tolerance to glufosinate herbicides."
Read Full Text:
Source:
United States Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances, Pesticide Fact Sheet. (2011, November 29). Retrieved from https://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/reg_actions/pip/smartstax-factsheet.pdf
Key Points:
*"We present for the first time a comparative analysis of blood and organ system data from trials with rats fed three main commercialized genetically modified (GM) maize (NK 603, MON 810, MON 863), which are present in food and feed in the world."
*"MON 810 and MON 863 are engineered to synthesize two different Bt toxins used as insecticides."
*"Effects were mostly associated with the kidney and liver, the dietary detoxifying organs, although different between the 3 GMOs."
*"The significant GM-maize linked effects are generally detected either after 14 weeks of consumption or at a high GM feed dose in the diet."
*"Our analysis highlights that the kidneys and liver as particularly important on which to focus such research as there was a clear negative impact on the function of these organs in rats consuming GM maize varieties for just 90 days."
Read Full Text:
Source:
de Vendômois JS, Roullier F, Cellier D, Séralini GE. A Comparison of the Effects of Three GM Corn Varieties on Mammalian Health. Int J Biol Sci 2009; 5(7):706-726. doi:10.7150/ijbs.5.706. Available from http://www.ijbs.com/v05p0706.htm
Key Points:
*"Doctors at Sherbrooke University Hospital in Quebec found the corn's Bt-toxin in the blood of pregnant women and their babies, as well as in non-pregnant women. (Specifically, the toxin was identified in 93% of 30 pregnant women, 80% of umbilical blood in their babies, and 67% of 39 nonpregnant women.) The study has been accepted for publication in the peer reviewed journal Reproductive Toxicology."
*"The young mice in the study also had elevated T cells (gamma delta), which are increased in people with asthma, and in children with food allergies, juvenile arthritis, and connective tissue diseases. The Bt corn that was fed to these mice, MON 810, produced the same Bt-toxin that was found in the blood of women and fetuses."
*"Farmers have used Bt-toxin from soil bacteria as a natural pesticide for years. But they spray it on plants, where it washes off and biodegrades in sunlight. The GM version is built-in; every plant cell has its own spray bottle. The toxin doesn't wash off; it's consumed. Furthermore, the plant-produced version of the poison is thousands of times more concentrated than the spray; is designed to be even more toxic; and has properties of known allergens—it actually fails the World Health Organization's allergen screening tests."
*"When natural Bt-toxin was fed to mice, they had tissue damage, immune responses as powerful as cholera toxin, and even started reacting to other foods that were formerly harmless."
*"But here too they ignore peer-reviewed published evidence showing that Bttoxin does bind with mouse small intestines and with intestinal tissue from rhesus monkeys."
*"Scientists speculate that it may lead to autoimmune diseases and food allergies."
Read Full Article:
Source:
Smith, Jeffrey M. (2011, May 28). Dangerous Toxins From Genetically Modified Plants Found in Women and Fetuses. Retrieved from http://www.healthymoneyvine.com/support-files/dangerous_toxins_from_genetically_modified_plants_found_in_women_and_fetuses.pdf
Key Points:
*"When a systemic pesticide is administered to a plant, the chemicals in the pesticide are transported through a plant's vascular system, which is similar to the human circulatory system. This allows the pesticide to be distributed to many different parts of the plant, and can often reach pests that would otherwise be harder to kill."
*"There is also a concern for plants that are cultivated for food, as systemic pesticide residues cannot be washed off, as they are part of a plant's tissue."
*"However, with systemic pesticides, once the insects consume part of the plant, they actually ingest the pesticide."
Read Full Article:
Source:
Maximum Yield, Systemic Pesticide. Retrieved from https://www.maximumyield.com/definition/1932/systemic-pesticide
Key Points:
*“More recently, crops including cotton, potato and corn have been modified to contain the gene for an inactive form of the Bt toxin. The plant itself is therefore producing the toxin which naturally occurs in bacteria. The Bt toxin becomes active in the gut of insects, which is an acidic environment with specific enzymes.”
*"Over 100 different variants of Bt toxin have been identified, and they don’t all affect the same insects."
Read Full Article:
Source:
Nesbit, Rebecca. (2013, November 27). View From the Fence, Bt crops – some background. Retrieved from https://gmfromthefence.wordpress.com/2013/11/27/bt-crops-some-background/
Key Points:
*”For example, Monsanto has crossed genetic material from a bacteria known as Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) with corn. The goal was to create a pest-resistant plant. This means that any pests attempting to eat the corn plant will die since the pesticide is part of every cell of the plant."
*"The resultant GMO plant, known as Bt Corn, is itself registered as a pesticide with the EPA, along with other GMO Bt crops. In other words, if you feed this corn to your cattle, your chickens, or yourself, you’ll be feeding them an actual pesticide — not just a smidgeon of pesticide residue.”
Read Full Article:
Source:
Michaelis, Kristen. Hybrid Seeds VS GMOs. Retrieved from https://www.foodrenegade.com/hybrid-seeds-vs-gmos/
Key Points:
*"EPA has conditionally registered MON 89034 x TC1507 x MON 88017 x DAS-59122-7, “SmartStax,”, a new bioengineered corn seed product containing genes for two Bt PIPs active against corn rootworm (CRW and three Bt PIPs to control different corn borer pests."
*"Monsanto and Dow have developed a new Bt corn product (SmartStax) with two Bt toxins (Cry34Ab1/Cry35Ab1 and Cry3Bb1) active against CRW. The use of multiple toxins against the same pest is termed a “pyramid.”"
*"Residues of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1A.105 protein in or on the food and feed commodities of corn; corn, field, flour; corn, field, forage; corn, field, grain; corn, field, grits; corn, field, meal; corn, field, refined oil; corn, field, stover; corn, sweet, forage; corn, sweet, kernel plus cob with husk removed; corn, sweet, stover; corn, pop, grain and corn, pop, stover are exempt from the requirement of a tolerance when the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1A.105 protein is used as a plant-incorporated protectant in these food and feed corn commodities."
*"Residues of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab1 proteins in corn are exempted from the requirement of a tolerance when used as plant-incorporated protectants in the food and feed commodities of corn; corn, field; corn, sweet; and corn, pop."
*"Overall, Monsanto/Dow have provided sufficient scientific justification to support a reduced corn rootworm (CRW) refuge of 5% for SmartStax Bt corn."
*"To address the uncertainty regarding CRW dose and buttress the dose assumptions used in the models, BPPD has required that Monsanto/Dow provide additional dose data (using the methods of Storer et al. 2006) for Cry3Bb1 and Cry34Ab1/35Ab1.
Read Full Article:
Source:
United States Environmental Protection Agency,Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances. (2011, November 29). Name of Plant-Incorported Protectant: Bacillus thuringiensis. Retrieved from https://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/reg_actions/pip/smartstax-factsheet.pdf
Key Points:
*"Modern biotechnology relies on newer techniques, such as genetic engineering, to incorporate genetic material from one living organism into another."
*"Plant-Incorporated Protectants (PIPs)" "For example, by transferring specific genetic material from a bacterium to a plant, scientists can create plants that produce pesticidal proteins or other chemicals that the plant could not previously produce."
*"Using this technology, scientists have modified corn, cotton, and potatoes to produce a pesticidal protein that is toxic when ingested by specific insect pests. In this case, the plant-incorporated protectants are chemicals produced by plants whose DNA has been modified, as well as the DNA that produces the chemicals."
*"The plant's modified DNA now expresses pesticidal properties by producing a bacterial protein that will protect the plant from specific insects. Since March 1995, EPA has registered 12 PIPs."
*"Genetically Modified Microbial Pesticides" "Genetically modified microbial pesticides are either bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoa, or algae, whose DNA has been modified to express pesticidal properties.""To date, EPA has registered eight such products, which contain a modified microorganism and inert ingredients."
*"Herbicide-Tolerant Crops""Herbicide tolerant crops contain new genes that allow the plant to tolerate these herbicides. The most common herbicide-tolerant crops (cotton, corn, soybeans, and canola) are those that are resistant to glyphosate, an effective herbicide used on many species of grasses, broadleaf weeds, and sedges."
*"EPA has established tolerance exemptions for registered genetically modified microbial pesticides and plant-incorporated protectants because, based on a thorough scientific evaluation, EPA has found that the tolerance exemptions are safe."
*"In these rules, the Agency has determined that, in regulating plant-incorporated protectants, the new protein and its genetic material are regulated by EPA; the plant itself is not regulated."
Read Full Article:
Source:
United States Environmental Protection Agency: EPA's Regulation of Biotechnology for Use in Pest Management. Retrieved from https://www.epa.gov/regulation-biotechnology-under-tsca-and-fifra/epas-regulation-biotechnology-use-pest-management