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Voters Will See GMO Measure In 2014
Southern Oregon
A petition filed along with 6700 signatures cleared the elections clerks office Monday. That means voters will have their say on whether or not genetically modified crops should be banned in Jackson County.
Ballot Measure 15-119 asks voters if they would approve a ban on "some" genetically engineered plants and allow for a person to enforce the ordinance.
the measure would allow GE crops to be grown indoors under a secure environment that wouldn't contaminate organic farmers.
It's unclear how the change would affect organic food prices.
About the Author
Travis Koch
NBC5 News reporter Travis Koch started his career as a filmmaker. He wrote and directed documentaries about traveling and extreme sports.
Among his many life experiences, he was a dog musher in Alaska and a baker in Minnesota. Travis began his career at NBC5 News as a weekend photographer and has continued to follow his dreams in television broadcasting and multimedia.
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Comments (5)
Isn't it obvious that all fresh foods would go up in price if agribusiness hampers or precludes growing our food supply locally, as the GMO crowd (I mean, GMO few) would rather we didn't realize! Even where producers aren't crowded into narrow valleys coexistence doesn't work, so we're starting to become a land that will have to import more fresh food from countries banning GMOs, as U.S. citizens catch up with their European, Asian and African counterparts in refusing so-called FrankenFood. Higher prices?? The evidence from three counties in California that already banned GMO crops, is all good, for food producers AND consumers, not to mention the environment and most especially, the soil we depend on! Kindler Stout, Ashland.
Local farmers and family gardeners need to be able to grow food without the threat of contamination through pollen from a nearby corporate crop of genetically-engineered plants. This is not only about organic food. It's about a basic right to grow truly natural crops. We are lucky to have a strong and successful community of natural and organic farms together with a multitude of local gardeners. But right now, local farmers crops and ability to save seeds is threatened by Syngenta, a Swiss company, whose GMO sugar beets may be spreading their genetically manipulated pollen to our local crops of natural plants. YES on this measure will ensure the continued success of small family farms and end the big biotech firms contamination of our valley.
The problem with waiting is that cross-contamination happens and ruins entire organic crops. One Jackson Cty farmer has already lost one crop - that's his livelihood.
So, my understanding of the ballot initiative is to ban Genetically Engineered crops from being grown in Jackson County. This is a small valley and farms are close together. There is not room for the 4mile radius between growers to keep plants from cross pollinating. The cross pollination of GE crops not only contaminates the seeds of Organic farmers, but of conventional farmers and home gardeners as well.
Syngenta is a Swiss corporation who is currently growing test plots of GE sugar beets all over the Rogue Valley. They are growing here in the US because GE crops are banned in Switzerland. Hmmm. I think there needs to be much more research on the health affects and environmental affects before allowing GE crops and food into the environment.
Banning GE crops from Jackson County probably won't make organic food more expensive. It will give organic growers an opportunity to grow food that will not become contaminated by Genetic engineering.
Organic food prices would drop due to the law of supply and demand. The supply of organic produce would be more plentiful since the GMO contamination problem would be eliminated. Furthermore, with GMOs out of the way, even conventional produce would be more attractive than it has been, possibly reducing the demand for organics.