The Rural Voice, 2000-01, Page 16"Our experience
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12 THE RURAL VOICE
iVlabel's Grill
"I may have to change my mind
about biotech," said George
McKenzie the other day as Molly
Whiteside delivered his breakfast
eggs and bacon.
"I wondered how long it would
take before
you caught on
that they're
messing with
nature putting
fish genes into
plants," said
Molly.
"It doesn't
bother me it
my wheat has
fish genes."
said George.
"What worries
me is if it has
beef genes."
"Pardon?"
Molly said.
"I read this article were the head
of some British supermarket chain
said that biotechnology will develop
plants that taste like beef and pork
and chicken and then supermarkets
won't have to worry about protests
from animal welfare issues."
"Well look on the bright side,"
said Dave Winston. "If you grow
soybeans that taste like beef you
won't have to keep up your fences
anymore."
"I don't know," said Cliff Murray,
"the way they talk about genes
migrating, you might find genes from
your beef -soybeans in my lamb -
corn."
"You mean they'd use corn to
taste like sheep?" wondered Molly.
"I'd think they might use something
like Iamb's quarters."
"Yeh, and pig weed for pork,"
said Dave. "That might not be so
bad. I always seem to be able to grow
a good crop of pig weed."
"How about sow thistle?" wonder-
ed George.
"That's right," said Dave. "Say,
do you think we'd still have three -
site production if we grew plants that
tasted like pork? Sow thistle on one
farm and pig weed on another?"
"I wish I could get my weeds nice
and separated like that," said Cliff.
"The problem is, even if I can
grow plants that taste like pork, what
The world's
problems are
solved daily
'round the table
at Mabel's
am I going to do with my barn?"
wondered Dave.
"Maybe you can keep bugs in it,"
said Molly.
"I've been spending 10 years
developing biosecurity to keep bugs
out of my barn," said Dave.
"No, I don't mean bacteria, I
mean real bugs — like crickets and
grasshoppers," said Molly. "I heard
about these scientists down in
Michigan who think we'll be
growing bugs for food."
"Yeh right!" scoffed George.
"You can't sell people an apple if it's
got a scab on it but you're going to
convince people they should be
eating bugs? I'll believe that when I
see it."
"It would be a little hard to get
used to," admitted Dave. "For 20
years I've been trying to kill bugs
and now I'm supposed to be
protecting them."
"You know the damnedest thing is
that we get used to thinking bugs are
invulnerable but if we were to
actually want to raise them, suddenly
there'd be all kinds of pests killing
them," said Cliff.
"The chemical companies would
love it," said George. "After years of
designing poisons to kill these things
now they could turn around and
make million protecting them."
"Have to watch out not to feed
them Bt corn wouldn't you?" said
Cliff.
"Yeh, you'd have to feed them
organic corn," said George. "They're
used to munching on that."
"So how do you tell if a cricket is
healthy?", Molly wondered.
"Oh they'll be kind of chirper,"
Cliff joked.
"A whole barn full of crickets
chirping," contemplated Dave.
"Might end up being about as loud as
pigs at feeding time."
"How would you go about it?"
wondered Cliff. "I suppose you'd
have to grow them in special cages."
"Oh great, then there'd be some
insect welfare crazies raiding your
barn to let the bugs free," growled
George.
"Yeh but I'd like to see them find
a picture of a cute, cuddly baby
cockroach for their placards for their
protest marches," said Molly.0