Letter to stop the sale of GM alfalfa seed in Canada

[hobbyfrmr]

Sale and release of genetically modified alfalfa will destroy the alflafa export market, discourage beef sales (thinking the most recent Earl's debacle) some dairy markets, lamb markets. I do not know any rancher or cattleman who desires genetically modified alfalfa.
Cross contamination of gm alfalfa with conventional alfala is inevitable because of the natural behaviour of bees .
Please take the time to read this letter to the Minister of Agriculture, sign it and send it if you agree with the message.

Individuals can take action by visiting

www.cban.ca/alfalfaletter2016

[farmaholic]

Hobby, as much as I don't want to be a wet blanket (but I'm liking the blanket of wetness we are getting!!!!!), I think it will eventually be released, and as someone on here said...even if it is "accidentally on purpose".

[perfecho]

All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing,,,,

[Guest]

good idea , this shit is the last thing we need

[hobbyfrmr]

I posted a rant about this a few weeks ago. I am really great at being sarcastic, ranting, good natured ribbing etc.
This GM alfalfa subject has been eating at me. I was thinking, what can I do about it? Which MLA or Minister of AG do I contact in order to tell them this is a bad and wrong event.
Today I received an email with the above weblink in it. ALL THE THINKING AND LETTER COMPOSITION IS DONE FOR ME. All I had to do is fill out the form and send it off. That weblink is as EASY as it gets for voicing my objection on this subject. So if you disagree with the sale/release of GM alfala this is the simplest and easiest way to get the message across.
These guys are going to totally **** over the alfalfa export market, along with the beef market. Honey ...
I just had a Chinese couple visit my farm last week looking for Saskatchewan honey and grain products to export to China. This is a very real and serious issue.

[grefer]

All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing,

Hear hear perfecho.Farma may be right but to do nothing and complain later doesn't cut it in my books. It makes me sick this kind of crap gets dumped on farmers and we are expected to deal with the consequences. I encourage those who feel this is wrong to send the letter. If it's not going to affect you do it for your neighbor who sells hay or grows seed or heaven forbid, farms organically.

[nibs1]

Filled out and sent

[Guest]

done , thanks for the link ,hobby

[hobbyfrmr]

Grefer, oooh, that punch landed right on my kidney!

I dont have livestock or make hay so I could say "not my problem". This is important to those who do and the repercussions spill over onto the grain production side. It is a green light for any industry players to impose their seed technology ownership onto primary producers who will then have an increased cost of production, lose market share on the world market. This will lower market prices and the farmer will be left with the cleanup of the new "weeds" in which will be the cost of spraying a different herbicide. This is a lose, lose for farmers.
It takes 6 minutes to send that letter to the proper government bodies.

[AllisWD45]

Done and sent

[grefer]

Grefer, oooh, that punch landed right on my kidney!

I dont have livestock or make hay so I could say "not my problem". This is important to those who do and the repercussions spill over onto the grain production side. It is a green light for any industry players to impose their seed technology ownership onto primary producers who will then have an increased cost of production, lose market share on the world market. This will lower market prices and the farmer will be left with the cleanup of the new "weeds" in which will be the cost of spraying a different herbicide. This is a lose, lose for farmers.
It takes 6 minutes to send that letter to the proper government bodies.

Sorry Hobby. It was a tongue in cheek remark. No kidney punch intended.

[parsley]

Thanks, grefer.

[grassfarmer]

I sent it a while ago and thus far have only got a reply from Elizabeth May.

[oneoff]

Well there are some pretty serious uncontrollable weeds in organic crops.


And whilst clipping off the top couple feet in an organic crop may only very temporarily reduce the noticable evidence from a very real problem; there untold numbers of coarse pepper seeds in those millions of seeds cups containing several hundred seeds each.

The only control mechanism for conventional farmers I can think of is GM tolerant alfalfa....until that weed seed bank is brough down to hand pickable numbers
It would have been way better for the original introducers (sometimes organic) farmers to not buy cheap screenings highly contaminated with weeds that are extremely difficult to control.

And I'm pissed off enough to respond to anyone who takes this out of context and attempts to tear any strips off my ass.

[chuckChuck]

Yes and there are some pretty serious uncontrollable weeds in non-organic fields due to herbicide resistance which is a growing problem all across North America including right on local farms on the prairies. Just ask weed scientists. It is well documented.

Non-organic farmers have been told to stop over using herbicides and start adopting integrated pest management methods like good crop rotation, forages, narrower row spacing, increased seeding rates.

I think farmers should be pretty pissed off over the over use of herbicides and introduction of more glyphosate resistant crops like alfalfa that will eventually make some herbicides useless. Which has already happened in the US where they have already gone back to hand weeding some of the worst herbicide resistant weeds.