A new study from the U.S. Geological Survey -- soon to be published in the journal Enviromental Toxicology and Chemistry -- finds that Monsanto's Roundup herbicide (technically known as "glyphosate") and its toxic degradation byproduct AMPA were found in over 75% of all air and rain samples in Mississippi in 2007.
Another new study -- published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health -- proposes that the epidemic of kidney failure found in areas with hard water is caused by an adverse reaction between Roundup and the chemicals found in hard water:
Roundup has been linked with many other diseases as well. Reuters reported last year:
"Heavy use of the world's most popular herbicide, Roundup, could be linked to a range of health problems and diseases, including Parkinson's, infertility and cancers, according to a new study.
"The peer-reviewed report, published last week in the scientific journal Entropy, said evidence indicates that residues of 'glyphosate,' the chief ingredient in Roundup weed killer, which is sprayed over millions of acres of crops, has been found in food.
"Those residues enhance the damaging effects of other food-borne chemical residues and toxins in the environment to disrupt normal body functions and induce disease, according to the report, authored by Stephanie Seneff, a research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Anthony Samsel, a retired science consultant from Arthur D. Little, Inc.
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"In 2007, as much as 185 million pounds of glyphosate was used by U.S. farmers, double the amount used six years ago, according to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data."
Indeed, "Roundup-ready plants" -- plants genetically engineered to be able to tolerate Roundup -- have overtaken the country. For example:
- Monsanto reports that -- between 2008 and 2009 -- 95% of all sugarbeets planted were genetically engineered to be able to tolerate high doses of the pesticide Roundup
- The USDA reports that 93% of all soy and 85% of all corn grown in the U.S. is an herbicide-resistant GE variety.
- Similarly, around 93% of all cottonseed oil and more than 90% of all canola oil produced in the U.S. is herbicide-resistant GE.
(Remember, genetically engineered foods have been linked to obesity, cancer, liver failure, infertility and all sorts of other diseases (brief, must-watch videos here and here). And genetically-engineered meat isn't even tested for human safety.)
But government agencies like the FDA go to great lengths to cover up the potential health damage from genetically modified foods, and to keep the consumer in the dark about what they're really eating. (Indeed, the largest German newspaper -- Süddeutsche Zeitung -- alleges that the U.S. government helped Monsanto attack the computers of activists opposed to genetically modified food.)
The EPA recently raised the allowable amount of a glyphosate -- the main ingredient in Monsanto's toxic Roundup -- by 3,000% ... pretending that it won't have adverse health effects.
As if that's not crazy enough, Monsanto wants to raise the stakes. Specifically, the use of Roundup is (1) creating superweeds and (2) a situation where more and more pesticides have to be used.
So Monsanto is lobbying hard for approval of Agent Orange-ready plants. (No, this isn't the Onion ... it's real.)
Where is this vicious cycle leading?
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