Dow AgroSciences has announced the development of genetically engineered corn, soybean, and cotton plants that are resistant to an herbicide containing 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). 2,4-D is a major ingredient of Agent Orange, a chemical that has been linked to over 400,000 birth defects in Vietnam.
A recent study reviewed Dow Chemicals' published research on 2,4-D resistant crops, and found it highly misleading and inaccurate. The researchers found, for example, that Dow had misrepresented the potential for the growth of resistant weeds.
Green Med Info reports:
“History is repeating itself before our eyes. Dow Chemicals and Monsanto ... both manufactured Agent Orange for use in Vietnam, and both are notorious for minimizing the adverse health effects associated with exposure to the agent. Neither corporation learned from its mistakes, largely because the U.S. government underwrote the risk of using the chemical, and therefore shielded them from the bulk of the legal and financial fallout.”