Reuters | November 21, 1999 | By Julia Ferguson
INNSBRUCK, Austria - Mistrust of genetically modified crops is spreading throughout Europe and is particularly rampant in Austria - the European Union's champion organic farmer.
The government, farmers and consumers are sceptical about the new technology's proponents who say altering the genetic makeup of a crop to increase resistance to pests and disease does not pose a threat to human health nor the environment.
"Nobody has come up with a reason that wholly justifies the use of genetically-modified agriculture," said Ludwig Gruber from the Tyrolean branch of Harvest for a Better Life, an association of organic farmers in Austria.
"In theory, they say they make these GM crops to combat illness and pests, but in practice they engineer them to tolerate chemicals," he said.
Another argument from the industry is that GM technology can produce bigger harvests irrespective of the season for less money and could solve food shortages in developing countries.
"This is utter nonsense. We're already overproducing and the Third World gets none of our surplus," Gruber said.
"And when they talk about engineering crops that are indigenous in the southern hemisphere to grow in the north, then that's proof they're only after financial gain because you'd be taking away the livelihood of a Third World coffee grower if you could grow the plant in Europe."
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
A rash of food scares has scarred consumers and turned them against hi-tech, industrial farming in favour of produce grown without the help of chemicals and livestock reared in their natural habitat.
In Austria, which has the most organic farms of the European Union's 15 member states, strong demand for organic food has prompted the biggest supermarket chains to offer their own extensive lines of organic food to keep the customer happy.
The state, aware that Austria benefits from its image as an environment-conscious country, offers farmers who switch to chemical-free agriculture a 20 percent increase in financial support.
Burgeoning demand, coupled with better prospects of survival, sparked an explosion in organic farming in Austria from 2,000 farms in 1991 to over 20,000 this year. More than a quarter lie in the mountainous western province of Tyrol.
Austria has 3.4 billion hectares of farmable land, and of this organic farming constitutes around 11 percent. Of the 220,000 farms, 10 percent are run according to strict organic-biological regulations.
Brigitte Haass is a professional violinist and mother of two and has been feeding her family wholly on organic produce for the last nine years despite paying more for the food.
Taste and health are not the only issues.
"It's my own contribution to the environment, and since I'm responsible for my children, I simply can't let them eat rubbish. You have to ask yourself why the other stuff is so cheap," she said.
"It's also important to support local farmers who you know are adhering to stringent controls. I trust them and don't want anyone else to get my money," she added.
MEET BELLA AND BIANCA
The dairy produce Haass buys comes from the black and white cows at the Wach organic farm on an Alp overlooking Innsbruck. The cattle spend the summer grazing on the mountains, and the cold winter inside with regular forays outdoors during the day.
Their feed is organic and the milk is controlled three times a month.
The Wach family doesn't care that a conventional farmer can get a cow to produce the same quantity in two years rather than the four they need. Money is not the issue - their cows live better and longer.
"We do it for idealism," said Alois Wach, an organic farmer for the last 30 years. "Because we are convinced that it is better and the only way to maintain farming in the future."
"We also want to have a clean conscience. ... Who knows what's going to come out after 20 years of GM crops - at first they used to say that nuclear power was harmless. Now we know better," he said.
Austria is anti-nuclear and has banned imports of GM crops.
BACK TO BASICS WITH MYSTIC GUIDANCE
The idea of tampering with nature to produce new organisms horrifies Christof Schmid, who cooks according to a prophetic 12th century abbess Hildegard von Bingen.
Hildegard extols the use of certain fresh produce such as beetroot and fennel to rid the body of toxins while forbidding others like leeks and fatty meat.
The Tyrolean also follows Hildegard's advice when planting and harvesting his few hectares of land based on the waxing and waning of the moon and cosmic constellations.
Most of his land is planted with spelt, a primitive kind of wheat which Hildegard says encapsulates the highest nutritional elements.
"My aim is to be able to produce more cheaply so that everyone can afford to eat nutritious food," Schmid said.
PROOF IS IN THE PUDDING
High up on a Tyrolean Alp a stone's throw from the German border, a tiny dairy cooperative is churning out world class cheese that sustains 40 local organic farmers and draws buyers from near and far.
The Hatzenstaedt dairy's emmentaler was awarded Best Cheese of the Year at the International Cheese Championships in 1990 and its manager traces this success to the natural processing and high-quality milk free from any man-made additives.
Genetically modified food is seen as an avoidable evil akin to nuclear power.
"Time will show that mankind has taken a huge step in the wrong direction with GM food. No scientist can say now what effect all this manipulation will have on nature," said Heinz Gstir from the Alpine cooperative.
"In the Bible, Eve is warned not to eat the fruit from the tree - and for me GM technology is the tree that produces forbidden fruit."
Copyright 1999 Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved.
