Pesticide problems

"Genetically modified cotton crops in the United States are becoming useless, as weeds evolve a resistance to the herbicide glyphosate. In the southern cotton crops, mutant weeds are becoming so bad mechanical harvesters are being damaged, and weed control must be done by hand [view ABC News USA video clip here]. A scientific study has found that the herbicide resistant weed population could threaten GM crop technology. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal."
GM cotton crops in US useless
ABC (Australia), 12 January 2010

Herbicide resistant crops:

* DuPont estimate that glyphosate resistant weeds will have spread to 40% of the US soya corn acreage by 2015 (Wall Street Journal, 4 June 2010)
* Roundup Ready GM crops have lead to at least nine species of weed developing resistance to glyphosate to the point where some farmers can no longer control weed infestations (New Scientist, 13 May 2010)
* The widespread use of 'Roundup Ready' crops in the United States has led to the emergence of 10 resistant weed species in at least 22 states affecting millions of acres (New York Times, 3 May 2010)
* Evidence from government funded research in America indicates that the widespread use of Roundup-Ready GM crops is adversely affect root growth and soil microbes (Reuters, 13 April 2010)
* There are now nine weed species in the United States that have developed resistance to glyphosate (AgWeb, 9 April 2010)
* With the spread of Roundup Ready crops the first case of a glyphosate-resistant weed (giant ragweed) in Canada has occurred (Strarphoenix (Canada), 6 April 2010)
* Farmers' uptake of GM crops in the United States has been influenced by powerful marketing, but the spread of the technology is leading to weed resistance (now including giant ragweed), greater costs, and lower yields (Iowa Independent, 11 March 2010)
* About 20 companies are bringing 40-50 products or services to market in Tennessee to try and deal with the rise of glyphosate-resistant weeds (The Commercial Appeal, 26 February 2010)
* Glyphosate resistance has spread to kochia weed populations in Kansas with GM driven glyphosate resistance in general estimated to be affecting nearly 11 million acres in the US (Reuters, 26 February 2010)
* Scientists have voiced support for research which shows rising levels of pesticide applications on GM crops in the United States (Nature Biotechnology, February 2010)
* A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has found that the occurrence of glyphosate resistant weeds in America could threaten the sustainable use of  GM crop glyphosate herbicide-resistant technology (ABC, Australia, 12 January 2010)
* Glyphosate herbicide resistance in weeds continues to spread in the United States and is now occurring in Iowa (Kansas Farmer, 18 December 2009)
* Herbicide resistant GM crops in the United States are continuing to result in increased usage of herbicide compared to non-GM systems (Reuters, 17 November 2009)
* In some GM crops glyphosate resistance has become so severe that farmers are having to resort to manual weeding (ABC News, 6 October 2009)
* The stacking of GM traits is leading to complications in the control of volunteer plants and increasing risks of insect resistance (AgProfessional, September 2009)
* Gylphosate resistant weeds have become such a problem in genetically engineered crops that some farmers in the US are turning back to using residual herbicides and even hoes, according Ford L. Baldwin of Practical Weed Consultants, LLC  (Delta Farm Press, 20 August 2009)
* One of the reasons for the rapid uptake of GM crops is the lack of independent science to give farmers impartial information on their actual performance, and some people are finally beginning to notice (Financial Times, Blog, 11 August 2009)
* Glyphosate resistant pigweed has been confirmed in 21 counties in Arkansas since first confirmed in Mississippi County since 2005 (University of Arkansas, 10 August 2009)
* Resistance to glyphosate has become so prevalent in some parts of the United States because of the introduction of genetically modified crops that some farmers are now resorting to hand weeding and Monsanto are paying farmers to switch to other herbicides (Memphis Commercial Appeal, 9 August 2009)
* In Tennessee and Arkansas glyphosate can no longer be considered a pigweed herbicide due to resistance problems (Delta Farm Press, 4 August 2009)
* For the first time since 2000 the share of the US soy crop taken by GM varieties has fallen as the economic reasons for growing them weaken (The Organic & Non-GMO Report July/August 2009)
* Glyphosate resistant weeds are spreading in Argentina with the growing of Roundup Ready soya (Geoforum, Vol. 40, No. 4. (July 2009), pp. 623-633)
* The use of glyphosate in 'Roundup Ready' crops has lead to 15 species of weed being resistant to the herbicide with the problem especially acute in the US (Agweek 8 June 2009)
* Glyphosate-resistant weeds now cover nearly 38 million acres in the United States (Delta Farm Press, 15 May 2009)
* Glyphosate resistant weeds are starting to emerge in Argentina following the introduction of Roundup Ready GM technology (ScienceDirect, 28 April 2009)
The explosion in weeds resistant to the glyphosate herbicide is continuing to spread across millions of acres in the United States causing some farmers to consider moving back to non-GM crops (France 24, 19 April 2009)
The development of glyphosate resistant weeds on US farms is encouraging the search for alterative to Roundup Ready technology. Bayer's Liberty Link soybeans will require multiple applications and/or use with other herbicides (Delta Farm Press, 13 February 2009)
Glyphosate resistance continues to be a problem for American cotton growers to the point where they are having to consider other weed management programmes that do not rely on Roundup Ready GM technology, including use of other herbicides and soil tillage (Delta Farm Press, 6 Feburary 2009)
As glyphosate resistance increases in Roundup Ready soy bean crops more farmers are considering returning to conventional beans and using residual herbicides as an alternative to glyphosate (Delta Farm Press, 5 February 2009)
LibertyLink soybeans introduced to fight glyphosate resistant weeds in 19 US states, but new beans treated with more than one type of herbicide (Delta Farm Press, 22 January 2009)
Glyphosate weed resistance in the US now includes ryegrass (Delta Farm Press, 30 October 2008)
Weed resistance to glyphosate is spreading in GM cotton crops in South Carolina and in Georgia some farms are even being abandoned (The Times and Democrat (South Carolina), 11 August 2008)
Glyphosate resistant horesweed continues to spread in Roundup Ready crops in the United States (Delta Farm Press, 13 August 2008)
Concerns have been growing about the social and environmental effects of growing GM soya in Argentina including the rising of weed resistant to glyphosate (IPS, 29 July 2008)
The Weed Science Scociety of America has issued a warning about the growing problem of glyphosate resistant weeds in the US (Farm Press, 5 June 2008)
Syngenta are trying to help us farmers deal with the growing problem of glyphosate resistant weeds, but there is no 'silver bullet' solution in the offing (Farm Delta Press, 30 May 2008)
GM crops are requiring more applications of Roundup (Delta Farm Press, 19 March 2008)
Glyphosate resistant weeds are becoming a major problem in Arkansas (Delta Farm Press, 13 March 2008)
GM crops have become closely associated with unsustainable monocroping systems and herbicide resistant weeds (Delta Farm Press, 12 February 2008)
Non-GM Cotton Just As Or More Profitable As GM (American Society of Agronomy, 11 February 2008)
Lack of rotation in GM crops giving rise to management problems (Delta Farm Press, 25 January 2008)
High uptake of GM crops in the United States is bringing its own weed and pest problems, (Farmers Weekly 30 October 2007)
GM herbicide resistant corn is causing volunteer control problems in follow-on GM crops (Farm Delta Press, 12 October 2007)
GM herbicide resistant crops need to be used with pre-crop emergence residuals to preserve yield (Delta Farm Press, 28 September 2007)
GM herbicide resistant crops are requiring more applications of Roundup (glyphosate) than originally expected (Delta Farm Press, 17 August 2007)
High uptake of GM crops in the United States is bringing its own weed and pest problems, Farmers Weekly, 30 October 2007
Glyphosate resistant GM cotton volunteers are complicating pest and disease management in Australia, FarmOnline April 2007
Glyphosate resistant weed problems emerge for GM soya growers in Brazil, Rural TV, Brazil, 14 January.2007
Glyphosate resistant pigweed spreads in US GM crops, Farm Press, 27 September 2006
Two glyphosate-resistant weeds associated with GM soya reported in Argentian and Brazil, Agrenco News, August 28, 2006
Weed resistance to Roundup continues to spread following the introduction of GM Roundup-Ready cotton crops - Associated Press, 8 July 2006
Glyphosate resistance spreads with use of Roundup Ready crops
No quick cures for glyphosate-resistant weeds - Delta Farm Press, 27 September 2005
Tennessee Researchers Confirm Glyphosate-Resistant Pigweed - Business Journal, 24 September 2005
Glyphosate-tolerant pigweed confirmed in West Tennessee - Delta Farm Press, 23 September 2005
GM weedkiller use increases - Farmers Weekly, October 2004
US Hits Volunteer RR Corn Problem - Farmers Weekly, September 2004
Argentina's bitter GM harvest, New Scientist 17 April 2004
USDA data shows GM crops generally do not reduce pesticide use
GLYPHOSATE-RESISTANT WATERHEMP MOVES INTO THE CORN BELT
'Glyphosate resistance dominates weed science meetings' - Successful Farming, December 6, 2002
Syngenta web site on GM crop resistance problems - click here
USDA Report Exposes GM Crop Economic Myths
UK Farming Establishment Knowingly Supports Unscientific GM Trials
'Welsh Farmer' - Flaws in GM crop trials - Feb 2002
Herbicide tolerant varieties have modestly increased herbicide use - Royal Society of Chemistry paper
Problems with Canola GE volunteers getting worse each year
'GM volunteer canoloa causes havoc' - Article - Monsanto forced to resort to hand weeding
Roundup Ready corn in the US has lead to an increase in herbicide usage on corn (maize) crops
GM fields spread new superweeds - Sunday Times
Disease and pestlience hits Missouri as GM soy expands
Monsanto gears up for special chemical mixtures against GM 'superweeds'
GM oilseed rape in Canada 'impossible to control' - CBC News report
ISU Weed Science Online - Are RR weeds in your future?
"Herbicide Impact on Fusarium spp. and Soybean Cyst Nematode in Glyphosate-Tolerant Soybean"
Soya realities expose GM hype - yields down, pesticides up
GM rape heading for agronomic scrap heap?
Cross-Pollination Leads to Triple Herbicide Resistance ISB News Report
Pollen flow between herbicide tolerant canola (Brassica napus)  is the cause of multiple resistant canola volunteers WSSA Abstracts, 2000 Meeting of the Weed Society of America, Volume 40, 2000
Roundup hits resistant weeds in US
US data reveals UK GM trials unscientific
Glyphosate treated GM soy regime impact on soil micro-organisms
"Weed Shift Worries" - GM farmers trade one weed problem for another - "Progressive Farmer" article
How much do we actually need GMOs? - Meeting of the Association of Formulation Chemists, Orlando, Sept 2000
GM Rape Changes Character - Gene Silencing - herbicide resistance lost
General Agronomic Problems With GM Cotton
GM Weed Shift Worries - Progressive Farmer, June 12, 2000
New Scientist on RR cotton volunteers problem
Sugar beet study exposes media manipulation by GM industry
Back to Back Roundup Ready Threatens Boll Weevil Control
GM Rape fails to perform as study reveals erroneous basis for UK fieldscale trials
First multiple HT GM gene-flow discovered in UK OSR trials
GENETIC ENGINEERING DOES NOT YIELD PESTICIDE REDUCTION - WWF report
NLP commentary on University of Kentucky Study showing no yield or cost benefits from Roundup Ready Corn
No yield or cost benefits from Roundup Ready Corn - University of Kentucky Study
Herbicide applications increase with Roundup Ready soya- Wisconsin study short summary
Complex nine point management plan required for herbicide resistant Canola volunteers
Triple-resistant canola weeds found in Alta., February 10, 2000
Canola - problems with herbicide resistance crop in canada
The failings of herbcide resistant crops
Monsanto approach to sustainability
Biodiversity impact of herbicide resistant crops - Iowa State University0
Briefing paper on agronomic and other problems associated with gm Oilseed Rape
Evidence of 'superweed' persistance
Weed resistance problems in Roundup Ready crops - Iowa State University
More weed resistance problems in Roundup Ready crops - Iowa State University
Promiscuity in transgenic plants - Iowa State University
See photo of surviving volunteer GM canola plants in Canada after spraying with Roundup!

Insecticidal crops:

"Growing cotton that has been genetically modified to poison its main pest can lead to a boom in the numbers of other insects, a ten-year study in northern China has found. In 1997, the Chinese government approved the commercial cultivation of cotton plants genetically modified to produce a toxin from the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) that is deadly to the bollworm Helicoverpa armigera. Outbreaks of larvae of the cotton bollworm moth in the early 1990s had hit crop yields and profits, and the pesticides used to control the bollworm damaged the environment and caused thousands of deaths from poisoning each year. More than 4 million hectares of Bt cotton are now grown in China. Since the crop was approved, a team led by Kongming Wu, an entomologist at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Beijing, has monitored pest populations at 38 locations in northern China, covering 3 million hectares of cotton and 26 million hectares of various other crops. Numbers of mirid bugs (insects of the Miridae family), previously only minor pests in northern China, have increased 12-fold since 1997, they found. 'Mirids are now a main pest in the region,' says Wu. 'Their rise in abundance is associated with the scale of Bt cotton cultivation.' Wu and his colleagues suspect that mirid populations increased because less broad-spectrum pesticide was used following the introduction of Bt cotton. 'Mirids are not susceptible to the Bt toxin, so they started to thrive when farmers used less pesticide,' says Wu. The study is published in this week's issue of Science. 'Mirids can reduce cotton yields just as much as bollworms, up to 50% when not controlled,' Wu adds. The insects are also emerging as a threat to crops such as green beans, cereals, vegetables and various fruits. The rise of mirids has driven Chinese farmers back to pesticides — they are currently using about two-thirds as much as they did before Bt cotton was introduced. As mirids develop resistance to the pesticides, Wu expects that farmers will soon spray as much as they ever did. Two years ago, a study led by David Just, an economist at Cornell University at Ithaca, New York, concluded that the economic benefits of Bt cotton in China have eroded. The team attributed this to increased pesticide use to deal with secondary pests. The conclusion was controversial, with critics of the study focusing on the relatively small sample size and use of economic modelling. Wu's findings back up the earlier study, says David Andow, an entomologist at the University of Minnesota in St Paul. 'The finding reminds us yet again that genetic modified crops are not a magic bullet for pest control,' says Andow. 'They have to be part of an integrated pest-management system to retain long-term benefits.'.... Wu stresses, however, that pest control must keep sight of the whole ecosystem."
GM crop use makes minor pests major problem
| Nature |13 May 2010

* A ten year study in China has found that GM Bt cotton can lead to a boom in secondary pests causing insecticide applications to rise towards their previous levels (|Nature |13 May 2010)
* Scientists are calling for the reassessement of the long-term impact of GM crops at a 'landscape level' as millions of hectares of Bt cotton in China become infested with secondary pests (Guardian, 13 May 2010)
* Cotton growers in Louisiana are finding that Monsanto's second generation Bollgard II Bt cotton is not providing the levels of pest control required and are increasing their pesticide applications in response (Delta Farm Press, 14 April 2010)
* Insecticide applications on Bt cotton crops in Mississippi have been rising over the last five years as secondary pest move into the void vacated by bollworms (Delta Farm Press, 7 April 2010)
* Bollgard II GM cotton in Louisiana is failing to control bollworms properly (AgFax.Com, 28 February 2010)
* Monsanto has acknowledged that pink bollworm resistance has been confirmed in Bt Cotton in India (Times of India, 6 March 2010)
* Pesticide applications on Bt Cotton in India are rising as new pests attack GM varieties (Telegraph (Calcutta) 16 February 2010)
* Although Bt crops in America helped reduce the use of insecticides in cotton crops initially, in Mississippi spraying has begun rising again resulting in total costs to farmers which are increasingly uneconomic (Delta Farm Press, 15 January 2010)
* Data shows Bt resistance is genetically modified corn and cotton crops is more commonplace than many researchers are prepared to acknowledge (Arizona Daily Star, 22 December 2009)
* The stacking of GM traits is leading to complications in the control of volunteer plants and increasing risks of insect resistance (AgProfessional, September 2009)

US Farmers who have used Bt cotton varieties to control bollworms are finding that other pests are now taking over to the point where some growers in Arkansas are giving up growing the crop (Delta Farm Press, 2 February 2009)
US Bt cotton acreage fell in 2008 and cost of Bt pest control proved greater than spray based methods (Delta Farm Press, 23 January 2009)
Second generation GM cotton in Australia has been suffering from poor pest control in Australia (Stock and Land, Australia, 15 January 2009)
Non-GM Cotton Just As Or More Profitable As GM (American Society of Agronomy, 11 February 2008)
Secondary insect pests are making inroads into Bt Cotton crops (Farm Press, 10 March 2008)
Indications of insect resitance to Bt in cotton crops appears to be emerging in the United States (The Hindu Business Line, 21 Feb 2008)
Insects are beginning to develop resistance to Bt technology in the US (Farmers Guardian, 11 February 2008)Pest develops GM Bt insecticide resistance, Farmers Guardian, 11 February 2008
Bt GM technology is proving ineffective in control root worms in the US, The News-Gazette 13 July 2007
Bollworms feeding on Bt cotton in Arkansas, Delta Farm Press, July 28, 2006
No pesticide savings for Bt cotton as growers in China lose money, Newswise, 25 July 2006
Growth of secondary pests erode benefits of GM Bt cotton in China, Cornell University, July 22-26, 2006
Problems persist with inadequately tested Bt Cotton varieties in India - Financial Express, India, 5 June 2006
Bt Cotton in US fails to improve biodiversity, Scientific American, 2 May 2006
India Government Admits Bt Cotton Crop Failures - The Times of India, 1 December 2005
Scientists Confirm Failures of Bt-Crops - ISIS, September 2005
Problems with GM Bt cotton in China - Reuters June 2004
GM Cotton Damages Environment In China - Xinhuanet report
Crop failure and major   husbandry problems with Monsanto's Bt cotton in India
GM crops under fire after Bt cotton venture fails in India
GM plants no panacea - Monsanto Admits to Bt crop problems - New Scientist Report
USDA Report Exposes GM Crop Economic Myths
Australian farmers advised to spray where Bt Cotton fails to control target pest
Insecticides Still Used Despite Biotech
Bt cotton fails in Indonesia
Study Questions Widespread Use of Bt Corn
Integrated Pest Management pays off as GM hits problems - Cotton World
Pupae problems hit Bt cotton in Australia
Early resistance of Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) to Bacillus thuringiensis and its relation to the effect of transgenic cotton lines expressing BT toxin on the insect
Development and characterization of diamondback moth resistance to transgenic broccoli expressing high levels of Cry1C
Bt cotton strain loses resistance to other pest - Journal of Cotton Science
Lethal effects of Bt corn on Monarch Butterfly
How much do we actually need GMOs? - Meeting of the Association of Formulation Chemists, Orlando, Sept 2000
Bt cotton pest resistance problems
General Agronomic Problems With GM Cotton
Transgenic Oilseed Rape line unexpectedly increases growth of crop pest
Risks associated with Genetically Modified (GM) Baculovirus Vectors to Control Insect Pests
Bt GM Cotton less profitable than conventional Cotton as 'stink bugs' hit back
EPA Restricts Planting of Biotech Corn - Jan 2000
Novartis GM Bt maize needs additional pesticides
No economic benefit to farmers from Bt corn - University of Purdue
GM pest technology collapsing - BBC (May 99)
Bt corn refuges proposed to increase to minimum 50% in southern US to fight GM pest technology breakdown (April 99)
Problems with Bt corn including up to 40% Non-Bt-Corn Refuges to slow GM technology breakdown - University of Illinois Review
Novartis desperate to prevent GM Bt corn crop obsolescence
Monsanto cuts price of GM cotton seed and withdraws value guarantee after two years of "mixed results"
Nearly 1 million acres of Bt Cotton crop in the U.S. attacked by bollworms
Bt Cotton still needs insecticide applications
Bt-spliced "NatureGuard" potatoes suffer from severe plant virus damage
EPA Requires Large Bt Refuges
Flaws in Bt cotton resistance management programme
Purdue University News on gm generated pesticide failures
Bt gm crops require more complex management from farmers
Problems with GM Bt insect resistance in cotton and maize
Problems with GM Bt insect resistance in maize
Monsanto's complex crop management requirements for growers to try and stop rapid pest resistance build-up in GM cotton

Viral resistance crops:

Big Isle virus resistant papaya crops tainted
Risks associated with virus resistant plants as identified by Monsanto and USDA
Special risks with field scale environmental releases of GMOs
Viral risk from GMOs
Viral danger from GM crops confirmed - John Innes Study details
Special risks from the Cauliflower Mosaic Virus promoter in transgenic crops

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