Argentines eat transgenic bread
Argentina has developed drought-resistant genetically-modified wheat. GM wheat products are on sale with no special labelling. Producers and large-scale farmers praise the new wheat but many others worry about the effect on their health.
Transcript
00:00 Farmer Aymar Dimo's land is much too dry.
00:04 Right now he's planting wheat.
00:06 But here in the province of Santa Fe, it hasn't rained for a long time.
00:11 So he's planting a genetically modified strain called HB4.
00:16 It can cope better with arid conditions and was developed by the Argentinian company Bioceres.
00:22 Aymar Dimo is a shareholder and the vice president of Bioceres.
00:27 Like many farmers in Argentina, he's worried about his ever-shrinking harvests.
00:33 We're currently going through a terrible drought.
00:39 I've been working in farming for 30 years and I've never seen anything like it.
00:48 Last year, he planted both genetically modified and conventional wheat to compare the two.
00:58 The genetically modified HB4 wheat yielded 10 to almost 20 percent more than the conventional wheat.
01:07 In Argentina, HB4 wheat is already being sold as food.
01:11 No extra labeling is required.
01:13 Other countries like Brazil and the U.S. have likewise authorized its use.
01:18 But there's also massive criticism of HB4 because it's resistant to a toxic herbicide called glufosinate ammonium.
01:25 Critics argue that means that the herbicide will likely be used, but Bioceres denies that.
01:32 We've never used glufosinate ammonium here. There's no need for it.
01:37 The chemical treatment we do is exactly the same as for conventional wheat.
01:41 In some cases, where it's necessary, it's used just for selected areas where there's a specific weed or problem.
01:48 But it's not used that much on Argentinian wheat fields.
01:56 Farmers Eduardo Spiaggi and Marcelo Fratin follow a different concept.
02:01 They also grow wheat, but they don't use any chemical toxins or genetically modified crops on their fields,
02:08 even if that means they end up with a much smaller harvest.
02:15 Wheat is a staple food in Argentina. That's why it's so important.
02:20 It's used in every household for bread, pasta and flour.
02:25 It wouldn't be healthy if it contained toxins.
02:30 We produce without any toxins or genetic engineering.
02:35 We think HB4 is dangerous because it was made to tolerate agrochemicals like glufosinate ammonium.
02:45 The two organic farmers grind their own flour and sell it across Argentina.
02:51 It's become very popular.
02:54 They point to studies showing that residue from agricultural chemicals remains in foods like fruit and vegetables.
03:05 The products you consume are directly affected.
03:09 Chemical residue stays in the ground, the air, on the microflora and microfauna,
03:14 and also affects the people who live near that farmland.
03:19 Eduardo Spiaggi is on his way to visit someone who has become sick because of the use of agrochemicals.
03:26 Norma Cabrera is a farmer too.
03:29 How are you doing?
03:31 Very well. Nice to meet you.
03:34 I'm Eduardo. Thanks for seeing us.
03:37 She shows him the neighboring farm.
03:39 There are soybeans planted here, one of the most important crops in Argentina after wheat and corn.
03:45 The farmer sprayed agrochemicals on his fields.
03:48 A court case determined that they made her sick.
03:51 Now the neighbor has to stay at least 500 meters away from her house when spraying chemicals.
03:59 I developed an allergy and started getting blotches on my skin.
04:03 My bones were damaged.
04:05 The doctor told me that I have the arthrosis of an 80-year-old.
04:12 Still, she has to continue working to survive.
04:18 Back to Santa Fe.
04:21 Biologist Raquel Chan headed up the team of scientists that developed the genetically modified wheat for Beoceres.
04:28 She thinks the worries about HB4 are unfounded.
04:32 The seeds are basically the same, she says.
04:35 They are either genetically modified or conventional seeds. In the end, it's the same bread being baked.
04:44 The plant is five months old and about that high by the time it develops grain.
04:49 There's unlikely to be herbicide in the grains.
04:52 I'm not saying it can't happen, but it's highly unlikely.
04:56 She's especially proud that Argentina developed the drought-resistant wheat variety rather than some wealthy, industrialized country.
05:08 Farmer Aymar Dimo, meanwhile, is on his way to the bakery in the city of Rufino.
05:16 The bakery here doesn't use his genetically modified wheat.
05:20 The opinion among consumers is mixed.
05:27 Anything else?
05:30 We shouldn't even consider planting genetically modified wheat seed.
05:35 Things should be kept as natural as possible, with no chemicals.
05:41 We experience drought every ten years, so it's good that they can do this.
05:47 It's good to have an alternative.
05:51 Aymar Dimo, for his part, plans to continue.