In the news is the recent discovery that H&M and two other clothing companies’ organic cotton has been found to contain genetically modified (GM) cotton. One source from H&M says this is possible while another says  there is no evidence of this. The story broke when a German newspaper cried fraud to H&M and two other popular european lines, C&A & Tchibo. An independent lab in Bremerhaven states that over 30% of the samples tested positive for containing genetically modified cotton. Of course the obvious question is what motivation the independent lab has to lie about these findings, making H&M and the others not guilty. The cotton came from India, a country which supplies more than half of the worlds organic cotton. While several certification companies were fined in 2009 for not following standards strictly enough the fault ultimately lies with the clothing companies, ““The fashion chains were not vigilant enough,” Monika Buening of the Federal Consumer Affairs Agency, told the Frankfurter Rundschau, adding that both H&M and C&A need to act tout de suite to minimize the damage.” (Thank you to Ecosaveology & Ecouterre for the full stories.)

Do you know what Genetically modified cotton is? I figure it is like genetically modified food but can not imagine why you would genetically modify cotton. Here is what I found out:

Genetically modifying a plant means injecting or deleting certain genes from the plant in order to bring about a desired change. In the case of cotton it is being done to make them herbicide & pest resistant. At least 83% of the cotton grown in the U.S. is genetically modified. The proponents of genetically modifying say that it reduces the need for pesticides however, the EU, Venezuala and other countries have banned GM products & seeds. Here are some reasons why GM cotton is bad:

• Crops which have been Genetically Modified to resist insects kill not just the “target insect” (such as the borer or weevil) but beneficial insects (such as the Monarch butterfly).
• Cotton crops which have been Genetically Modified to resist herbicides encourage the use of larger quantities of herbicide, with the effect that both weeds and beneficial plants are killed indiscriminately. These herbicides are harmful to both the environment and to humans.
• Genetically Modified plants may crossbreed with wild species to produce “superweeds”, which cannot be eliminated using standard herbicides.
• The use of Genetically Modified Cotton encourages dependence by the farmers on a single seed supplier and may involve the purchase of both the seed and herbicide from one supplier. The farmer is then at the mercy of the seed company who may vary prices of both seed and herbicide at will.
• The use of Genetically Modified Cotton reduces the number of Cotton species which are actively grown and therefore reduces biodiversity.
• Toxic compounds such as glyphosphate (RoundUp) and Bromoxynil are used on Genetically Modified Cotton crops. The US Environmental Protection Agency has approved the use of Bromoxynil despite acknowledging “…serious concerns about developmental risks to infants and children.”
• The nature of genetic modification and long term effects are not well understood as these products have not been properly tested before being released into the environment. In the USA, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved the use of Genetically Modified Cotton based on data supplied by the manufacturer, Monsanto.

(This is from this website.) ( An aside to this, Monsanto is now the lead supplier of Soybean seeds in the U.S. and is accused in the movie Food, Inc. of forcing farmers who do not buy their seeds out of business. If you haven’t seen Food, Inc. yet, watch it they explain it well.)

Interestingly enough there is concern that the pest resistant GM cotton is going to create pests that are resistant to any pesticides, similar to our bacteria now which has evolved from the use of anti-bacterials, and we will not have a solution to kill those pests if need be. Of course then we will need stronger pesticides to kill those pests and you can imagine what that will do to our health.

Interestingly enough, growing cotton organically takes care of a majority of the pest problems. In organic fields the evolution of “good” bugs and pests kill off the “bad” bugs and pests, thereby eliminating the need for pesticides.

Call me crazy but the organic method seems a much safer option than genetically modifying anything.

(oh, and one other thing to consider, this genetically modified cotton is also being used in food with cottonseed oil, such as fried foods and margarine, and feed given to farm animals, which is then slaughtered and taken to market.)

-Sheri

Tags: genetically modified, genetically modified cotton, organic cotton