NFU press release on Enviropig

Why, oh why are scientists rushing to get out GE pigs and fish?  Please read this press release from the National Farmers Union 

                                                  

March 2^nd, 2011

NFU SAYS ENVIROPIG IS NOT THE ANSWER

Guelph, Ontario – On March 1^st, National Farmers Union (NFU) Region 3 Coordinator Sean McGivern met with the Board of Directors and senior staff of Ontario Pork to warn them about the dangers of the Enviropig.  The so-calledEnviropig is a genetically modified pig developed by researchers at the University of Guelph, and is designed to reduce feed costs for pig farmers and phosphorus pollution of surface and ground water.  The Enviropig excretes less phosphorous manure, which its proponents argue makes it a more environmentally friendly type of pig.  Ontario Pork has invested a significant amount of funds in the project.  “Enviropig is not the answer.  The answer is good farm management,” NFU Region 3 Coordinator Sean McGivern told the audience.    

The NFU is part of a coalition of social and environmental groups critical of Enviropig.  These groups argue that the real cause of surface and ground water pollution is the concentration of hog-confinement facilities and the number of animals in them, not the pigs themselves.  They also argue that public money should not have been used to fund the privately-owned genetically modified organism (GMO), nor should humans have the right to genetically modify life forms for private profit.

“The fact is farmers who practise good farm management do not have phosphorous pollution problems.  Those problems are directly related to the type of farm management being practised.  Concentrated hog confinement facilities produce phosphorous pollution,” explained McGivern. 

“Another point is that most livestock producers still use manure as their primary source of fertilizer.  If they can’t get it from manure, they’ll have to get it from big fertilzer companies that are going to charge a high price.  If good farm management is practised, phosphorous will be considered an asset, not a liability,” concluded McGivern.     

“The final point to make is that genetically modified pigs threaten to destroy thousands of years of work by Mother Nature on the pig species.  Once Enviropig is released into the marketplace, there will be no controlling it; there will be no way to track its spread among the rest of the hog population.  Genetic contamination of Canada’s entire pig herd is inevitable if it is released,” stated McGivern.  “Contrary to what a lot of people might like to think, GMO pigs from Canada are not going to be ending up on the plates of people all over the world.  Quite the opposite, in fact.  Many people in many countries just don’t want to eat GMOs.  We’ll lose markets that we have now,” warned McGivern. 

“The most important thing to understand is that Sean McGivern and the NFU have one main focus: to protect the best interests of Ontarian and Canadian farmers.  As I’ve made clear, we have many concerns about GMOs, no matter the type. Enviropig is just the latest form of GMO that farmers in Canada are having to contend with,” concluded McGivern.      

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For further information, please contact:

Sean McGivern,            NFU Region 3 Coordinator                    Home   (519) 794-4445

                                                                                                Cell      (519) 374-9300

Karen Eatwell               NFU Region 3 Executive Secretary        Office  (888) 832-9638