Opinions About GMO

 Herb Barbolet
Executive Director of Vancouver's FarmFolk/CityFolk Society
Brian Ellis, Ph.D.
Professor, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of British Columbia

Sid Katz, Ph.D.
Panel moderator; Professor, Pharmacology, University of British Columbia; Acting Director, Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, University of British Columbia

Mark Winston, Ph.D.
Professor, Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University



 Herb Barbolet

Executive Director of Vancouver's FarmFolk/CityFolk Society

"We don't know the risks of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) because there's no way of knowing. There's no labeling. Therefore there is no traceability. Therefore, there is no accountability. Therefore, there is no liability. 
This is not just an extension of what was already done. This is entirely new."

Herb Barbolet is co-founder and Executive Director of Vancouver's FarmFolk/CityFolk Society. From the local to the global scale, he works in the areas of food policy and food democracy, linking food to health and safety, environment, social justice, community economic development and international development. In the past three years Mr. Barbolet has served on two sub-committees of the Canadian Biotechnology Advisory Committee. He is a frequent guest on the CBC Radio show BC Almanac, and regularly comments on food issues in the press. He is co-author of FarmFolk/CityFolk, published in 1998.




Brian Ellis, Ph.D.
Professor, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of British Columbia

"The challenge of labeling genetically modified products is enormous. That's not an excuse for not getting to the endpoint, but there has been a very large committee wrestling with this at the national level for over three years now and they still haven't been able to reach a consensus."

Brian Ellis is a professor at the University of British Columbia in the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences. His primary field of research is forestry genomics. He is currently the co-leader of the Genome BC project, studying the mechanisms of wood formation and pesticide resistance in forest trees. His other work includes the biochemistry and evolution of metabolic enzymes, and the genetic engineering of crop and forest plants to improve their value. Brian Ellis' teaching assignments include courses in plant breeding and biotechnology. From 2000 to 2001, he served as Co-Chair of the Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel on the Future of Food Biotechnology.



Sid Katz, Ph.D.
Panel moderator; Professor, Pharmacology, University of British Columbia; Acting Director, Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, University of British Columbia

"When GMOs were first developed, there were a lot of hopes and dreams attached to them. They could help feed the hungry, provide missing nutrients and maybe someday deliver pharmaceuticals. Where are those hopes now?"

Sid Katz is a professor of Pharmacology at the University of British Columbia and Acting Director of UBC's Chan Centre for the Performing Arts. During the past 15 years, he has spent a considerable portion of his time promoting science to the public. He is an award-winning science communicator with a wide-ranging career in radio, television and print journalism. He is a health and science commentator for CBC Radio and a medical specialist for CTV National News. He has served as Executive Director of Science World in British Columbia and Director General and CEO of the Ontario Science Centre. He chairs Genome BC's education committee.



Mark Winston, Ph.D.

Professor, Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University

"I'm more concerned with environmental effects of the current GMO crops than human health effects. There's nothing in there that appears to be problematic, like a pesticide that we know has particular health risks. We're dealing with things that have been well tested through traditional food safety criteria."

Recognized as one of the world's leading expert on bees and pollination, Mark Winston has also had a distinguished career writing and commenting on environmental issues and science policy. He is a professor of Biological Sciences at Simon Fraser University. He has written two books on science controversies: Nature Wars: People vs. Pests (1997) and Travels in the Genetically Modified Zone (2002). The former is a probing and thoughtful discussion of pesticide use. The latter is equally compelling. He has been awarded the Sterling Prize in Support of Controversy, the Manning Award for Innovation and the Eve Savory Award for Science Communication. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

Website:

http://nature.ca/genome/06/062/0623/0623_11a_e.cfm


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