GMO hullabaloo

Given the fact that world demand for food is going to skyrocket, some see it doubling, in the years ahead, it seems that the only word to describe the controversy over genetically-modified organisms is this one: nonsense. The biggest battle over GMOs right now is in the European Union (EU). And it's because of this: last summer, minute traces of unapproved GMO corn unapproved in the EU but approved in the U.S. was found in a shipment of soybeans from the U.S. to Europe. The result has been literally to freeze soybean exports to the EU, which has created nothing short of a crisis for the European feed and livestock industries.
At the moment there is only about a 30-day supply of much needed soy in Spain and several other countries. Because the U.S. cannot guarantee that soy shipments are free of traces of GMO corn, no U.S. soy is being exported to the EU. And with one of the lowest harvests of South American soybeans years due to a serious drought, there are no soybeans of South American beans available for export to anyone. Adding more pressure to the mix for the EU is the fact that China is buying large quantities of soybeans this year.
As a result, it's said that the premium on soybean meal in Europe at the moment is as much as $90/ton.The EU's stance of dragging its heels is putting its feed and livestock industries at a comparative disadvantage, but the larger issue is how its position is justified in a world that is going to need increasing amounts of food, especially animal protein, in the years ahead.
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