Reply #29

The bacteria produces a protoxin in the form of a crystal which has specificity based on the pH required to dissolve it into the protoxin (requires a high pH to dissolve) . This crystal lasts 24 hrs in sunlight and about as long in the soil. The engineered plants produce the actual toxin which nobody has done any toxicology work on which by studies you provided in another thread seems to last in the soil longer that 180 days doing god knows what to the soil microorganisms. Bacillus thuringiensis is actually a soil bacteria and we know that it's toxin has activity with insects, but we do not know it's activity on soil microorganisms. Which they most certainly have or why would over 2500 strains of them produce so many different toxins- and all in the soil?

This is not science- this is lunacy that is totally inconsistent with any morality. This is about business people deciding to try to run roughshod of the EPA, use all the Bt safety studies that had already been done with the fermented natural Bt to get their product exempted from tolerance testing entirely by the EPA back in the late 80's early 90's. This terrible and dangerous decision will be the end of this industry.

The industry had a chance to get through this by just allowing the labeling. Tey decided to do themselves in by fighting the proposition with such force and in doing so revealed to the entire public what we in the scientific plant breeding and environmental community have known all this time. They are bullies and they lie.....just like the republicans.