SoylentNews

-- OriginalOwner_ [tinyurl.com] writes:

from the conflict-of-interest dept.

Common Dreams reports [commondreams.org]

Public skepticism is growing over a new report that claims genetically modified (GE or GMO) foods are safe for consumption, particularly as information emerges that the organization that produced the report has [strong economic] ties to the biotechnology industry.

Genetically Engineered Crops: Experiences and Prospects [google.com][Redirects to a PDF], released [May 17] by the federally-supported National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, states not only that GMO crops are safe to eat, but that they have no adverse environmental impacts and have cut down on pesticide use.

[...]One day before publication, the environmental advocacy group Food & Water Watch (FWW) reported in an issue brief [foodandwaterwatch.org] (PDF) that the National Research Council (NRC)--the National Academy of Sciences' research arm--has deep ties to the biotech and agricultural industries, which FWW says have "created conflicts of interests at every level of the organization."

The NRC and the National Academy of Science take millions of dollars in funding from corporations like Monsanto, DuPont, and Dow Chemical, FWW reported in its issue brief, Under the Influence: The National Research Council and GMOs [foodandwaterwatch.org](PDF).

Representatives from those companies\u2014along with Cargill, General Mills, and Nestle Purina, among other GMO-friendly businesses--also sit on the NRC's board that oversees GMO projects. NRC has not publicly disclosed those ties, FWW said. In fact, more than half of the invited authors of the new report have ties to the industry.

According to the issue brief, not only does the NRC have a history of bias toward the industry, it has also worked to silence critics of GMOs and of the companies that sit on its board.

Original Submission