Last week as I emerged from a grocery store I was met by a young GREENPEACE campaigner.  He asked me if I would like to sign a petition to  ”help save the whales.”  I told him that as much as I like whales, I could not in good conscience support GREENPEACE as an organization.  He looked genuinely stunned and asked why?  I explained that GREENPEACE has been very successful at blocking GMO technology and that in doing so they have compromised the food supply and particularly the food supply for the poorest people on the earth.

At this point I could tell that he was quite willing to dismiss me because of his strong confidence that the anti-GMO struggle was part of the same “virtuous” calling that had him standing outside of this store. He asked me what I did for a living.  I explained that I was an agricultural scientist and that I worked with the people who strive to keep humanity fed.

He asked what that had to do with GREENPEACE and I said,

“You should read Robert Paarlberg’s book, ‘Starved for Science’ which documents how anti-GMO forces like GREENPEACE are effectively setting up places like Africa for continued food shortages that might have been addressed by GMO crops.”  He said he would look into that.

I parted by saying, “if GREENPEACE is wrong on this issue, which I believe it is, you and your organization bear a huge responsibility because of the effectiveness of your anti-GMO activities and what that means for the future of global food supply.”

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