Scientist challenges Hawaiin activist claim that GMOs increase use of toxic chemicals

On February 27, Paul Achitoff of the group Earth Justice opened an op-ed in Civil Beat with the emotive claim that “the genetic engineered crop industry is “dousing the Garden Isle with extremely toxic chemicals.”

Science and publicly available data shows otherwise.

Achitoff focuses on a specific chemical called chlorpyrifos, which was not, as he claims, “developed during World War II as a nerve gas.” In fact, it was developed in 1965, specifically as an insecticide.

It is classified by the EPA as “moderately toxic.” This puts it in the same range of toxicity with familiar chemicals like caffeine, the capsaicin in hot peppers, and asprin.

Whatever the motivations of the Earth Justice organization may be, what they are effectively doing is misusing this and other public information to promote fear among the citizens of Hawaii – fear that is unnecessary.

Read the full, original story: Debunking Some Recent Anti-GMO Arguments

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