<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:verdana,sans-serif"><h1 class=""><font size="4"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"></span></font></h1><h1 class=""><font size="4"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"></span></font><font size="4"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><p class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-weight:normal"><font><span class=""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:windowtext">Scientists
believe that dioxin, and not 2,4-D, is the cause of birth defects, disease, and
other medical problems resulting from Agent Orange.� However, widespread use of
2,4-D may pose other threats to agricultural production and sustainability.� This application for USDA approval comes from Dow Chemical -- which also produced Agent Orange during the war -- and not Monsanto.� CS</span></span></font></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight:normal"><i><font><span class=""><span style="font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:windowtext"><br></span></span></font></i></span></p><span style="font-weight:normal"><i><font>
</font></i></span>New GMO Seeds Approved By USDA Able To Withstand 2,4-D, Weed Killer Used In Agent Orange</span></font></h1><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p class=""><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Jan 3, 2014 <span>by</span> <a href="http://www.globalpossibilities.org/author/globalpossibilities/" title="Posts by GlobalPossibilities" rel="author">GlobalPossibilities</a></span></p>
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<p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">By M.L. JOHNSON 01/03/14 11:39 AM ET EST <br></span></p><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><img alt="AP" src="http://s.huffpost.com/images/v/ap_wire.png" width="18" height="18"></span></p>
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<div><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif"><img id="badges_v2_1_slice_1" alt="GMO Seeds" src="http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1543164/thumbs/n-SOYBEAN-large570.jpg" width="200" height="83"></span></div>
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<div itemprop="keywords"><b><font size="1"><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Immature corn plants are surrounded by <br>standing
water in a field outside Wyanet, <br>Illinois, U.S., on Tuesday, May 28,
2013. <br>Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg via <br>Getty Images | Bloomberg
via Getty Images</span></font></b></div>
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</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">MILWAUKEE (AP) � The U.S. Department of Agriculture opened the door
Friday to commercial sales of corn and soybean seeds genetically
engineered to resist the weed killer 2,4-D, which is best known as an
ingredient in the Vietnam War-era herbicide Agent Orange.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The U.S. military stopped using Agent Orange in 1971, and it has not
been produced since the 1970s. Scientists don�t believe 2,4-D, which is
legal and commonly used by gardeners and some farmers, was responsible
for the health problems linked to Agent Orange.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The USDA�s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service published a
draft environmental impact statement Friday as part of the process for
potential deregulation of the seeds, which can now be used only in
tightly controlled field trials. Deregulation would allow commercial
development of the seeds and presumably lead to greater use of the
herbicide.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The USDA has oversight over the seeds, not the herbicide.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The public has 45 days to comment on its report. The Environmental
Protection Agency is conducting a separate review of 2,4-D, although it
previously found it safe to use.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Some corn and soybean farmers have eagerly anticipated a next
generation of herbicide-resistant seeds as weeds immune to Monsanto�s
Roundup, known generically as glyphosate, become more common. Most corn
and soybeans grown in the U.S. are genetically engineered, usually with
the Roundup resistant trait.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">But some scientists and environmentalists regard the development with
alarm, noting 2,4-D can easily drift beyond the area where it is
sprayed, threatening neighboring crops and wild plants.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The USDA�s plant inspection agency found the greatest risk from the
seeds, developed by Dow AgroSciences, was that increased use of the
herbicide could hasten the evolution of weeds resistant to it. But it
said resistance could happen anyway because 2,4-D, sold by Dow
AgroSciences and other companies, is the third most-used weed killer in
the nation.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The herbicide has had limited use in corn and soybean farming because
it becomes toxic to the plants early in their growth. The new seeds
would allow farmers to use 2,4-D throughout the plants� lives.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">The EPA will look at the impact of expanded use of 2,4-D in a report
expected to be released for public comment in the coming months. The EPA
and APHIS are expected to make final decisions simultaneously on use of
the chemical and seeds. The timing on that is uncertain.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Dow AgroSciences has asked APHIS to deregulate one variety of corn
and two varieties of soybeans. Both soybean varieties resist 2,4-D, but
they differ in their immunities to other herbicides. All three seeds
have immunity to multiple weed killers.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">APHIS said farmers could help deter the development of 2,4-D
resistance by using a variety of means to fight weeds and not relying
solely on it.</span></p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">
</span><p><span style="font-family:arial,helvetica,sans-serif">Scientists do not believe 2,4-D was responsible for the health
problems in Vietnam veterans that have been linked to Agent Orange.
Instead, they have focused on dioxin, a cancer-causing contaminant found
in another ingredient known as 2,4,5-T. EPA banned 2,4,5-T in 1985.</span></p>
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