I am an appointed member of the Food and Agricultural Policy Council for the County Commissioners of Boulder County Colorado. The council had been asked to consider a request for 6 farmers that have leases to farm land owned by the County as Open Space Agricultural Land to rotate into their crop plans GMO sugar beets. I have reviewed the request, read supplied documentation, understood why the county staff recommended allowing farmers to use GMO crops and the restrictions they suggested to appease the concerns. I have researched for hours the implications, the science, the hype, and both sides using fear, uncertainty and doubt to plead their case. On July 30 I listened carefully to over 75 concerned citizens in a public meeting describe their concerns and recommendations. I understand how incredibly difficulty farming is in any form, conventional or organic. Ultimately it falls on the Food and Agricultural Policy Council to make a decision as individuals and then as a group for a recommendation to our elected County Commissioners.
I have documented here most of my comments during the discussion after the motion to allow the farmers to grow GMO sugar beets on their leased land.
The decision to allow or not to allow GMO sugar beets on Boulder County Open Space agricultural land will affect the livelihood of some farmers. We’ve heard them and I do empathize with their position. However, it grieves me that the only way these farmers believe they can survive is to use the new technology of GMO sugar beets. The farmers say they believe there is no other choice if they are going to be successful, they feel GMO is a sustainable option, that GMO would use less poisons and be ecologically advantageous.
At the same time we are hearing these farmers decry the possible restriction of GMO technology we are experiencing a demand for more land for citizen farming, organic farms and for young farmers to use open space land in new and sustainable ways. These new farmers are looking for innovative ways to access and use land. They aren’t asking for government support, just fair access and protection from the subsidized industrial farms and pollution of the conventional farms. They do need community support to continue to discover the science of organic and sustainable farming, these are sciences in their infancy and they are rediscovering the science of natural biological interactions. They want to use the most economically sustainable method to continue in their efforts, which is to sell direct to their community. Farming is the most economically simulative and sustainable new entrepreneurial business we can bring back to this County.
Boulder County has a unique opportunity for use of this available public owned agricultural land to provide leadership for the economic viability of our farming future. Our county can enhance our international reputation as a large natural food manufacturing base or it can choose to support the GMO method that is clearly not going to be a long term solution in this county. Our petitioning farmers tell us they are in their last attempts at maintaining their success. Their supporting infrastructure is moving further and further away. It is a difficult argument to make that growing a patented plant when it is illegal to save its seeds and has restrictive contracts to grow it or do research upon it, is an economically, ecologically or a socially sustainable solution.
We are seeing unprecedented growth in the organic, natural, and local food movement with the food industry clamoring to find a way to meet this demand. It is very clear organic and real natural food is now experiencing the largest growth in the industrial food chain.
This is a serious enough question that it has been posed to these councils to make a recommendation. Is this proper use of Boulder County Open Space agricultural land? This land is owned by the citizens of Boulder County and it is clear there is an overwhelming wish was to keep the land open and kept in a sustainable way. There comes a time when a government must use it resources when free enterprise cannot find a viable solution. The County has policy established wishing to see its opens space agricultural land used in organic and sustainable production. The use of GMO products is a slap in the face of this agenda and policy.
Our organic farmers are finding youth interested in their methods and willing to investigate their farms. Workers are willing to work for them to learn the methods. We hear the conventional farmers say labor is almost nonexistent and impossible to find. It is easy to see why when given a choice a talented farm hand would chose to work in a clean environment instead of a toxic field full of herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers that slowly leach the land of all topsoil and life.
I urge the County Commissioners to not allow the increased use of GMO on County Open Space land.
Mark Menagh
