Political Quotes

“Antiscience, fear-mongering strategies cannot be left unanswered. I believe there are a few things people should know about biotechnology. First, I appreciate anyone's safety concerns. That is why it is important to note that the USDA and the FDA rigorously test every biotech crop for human safety for years before anything can be brought to the market. To be clear, no peer-reviewed study--and there have been hundreds-- has ever found GMO foods have caused health concerns, ever. {time} 1200 Individuals have concerns about environmental impacts. I appreciate that, too. But what many people don't know is that, by turning on just one gene in corn, we now have a corn that is significantly more pest- resistant, which means huge reductions in the use of pesticides. We can do this with other crops as well. To be probiotech is to be proenvironment. There is a type of rice that is vitamin A-enriched and has the ability to prevent hundreds of thousands of cases of blindness and death from vitamin A deficiency around the world. There is a really nasty type of wheat rot called UG-99 spreading from Africa and the Middle East that has the ability to kill 90 percent of the world's wheat supply. To be clear, this would cause a global famine. Scientists are looking at a way to create rot-resistant wheat through biotechnology and gene sequencing, which would save millions and millions of lives. Mr. Chair, this technology is good proenvironment, lifesaving technology.…”