Comments for Biofortified http://www.biofortified.org Stronger plants, stronger science, and stronger communication. Fri, 30 Jul 2010 20:51:29 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Comment on Details on the Dirty Dozen by James http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/details-on-the-dirty-dozen/comment-page-1/#comment-6025 James Fri, 30 Jul 2010 20:51:29 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3596#comment-6025 Awesome post. I've also run across this "dirty dozen" list, in the course of a websearch to try to find crops ranked by average total pesticide application per acre (a very different statistic). If there were 616 peach samples analyzed and 2,155 positive tests, that's an average of ~3.5 positive tests per sample. I'd say the EWG's 96% number for the number of samples that showed detectable (not dangerous) levels of any of the pesticides tested sounds credible. However adding in pesticides that were detected years ago but not today is much more problematic on their part. If nothing else that means crops that have transitioned from an older set of more toxic pesticides to a completely different set of less toxic ones today could potentially show up as having twice as many pesticide residues detected! Awesome post. I’ve also run across this “dirty dozen” list, in the course of a websearch to try to find crops ranked by average total pesticide application per acre (a very different statistic).

If there were 616 peach samples analyzed and 2,155 positive tests, that’s an average of ~3.5 positive tests per sample. I’d say the EWG’s 96% number for the number of samples that showed detectable (not dangerous) levels of any of the pesticides tested sounds credible.

However adding in pesticides that were detected years ago but not today is much more problematic on their part. If nothing else that means crops that have transitioned from an older set of more toxic pesticides to a completely different set of less toxic ones today could potentially show up as having twice as many pesticide residues detected!

]]> Comment on Open House! by James Giese http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/open-house/comment-page-1/#comment-6014 James Giese Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:15:31 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3603#comment-6014 Dear Frank, Great photos and thanks for stopping by the open house. I had a chance to meet Karl but forgot to introduce myself to you. Make sure if you go to our Annual Meeting in Long Beach this year to give me a call, so I can set up media registration for you. I think you would find some of the technical sessions very informative, and it would be great to see you there. Best regards, James Giese Director of Science Communications ASA-CSSA-SSSA Dear Frank,

Great photos and thanks for stopping by the open house. I had a chance to meet Karl but forgot to introduce myself to you.

Make sure if you go to our Annual Meeting in Long Beach this year to give me a call, so I can set up media registration for you.

I think you would find some of the technical sessions very informative, and it would be great to see you there.

Best regards,
James Giese
Director of Science Communications
ASA-CSSA-SSSA

]]> Comment on Details on the Dirty Dozen by Zachary Aletheia http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/details-on-the-dirty-dozen/comment-page-1/#comment-6011 Zachary Aletheia Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:52:20 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3596#comment-6011 In a way i disagree with your analysis (could be my ignorance) of the "percent of samples tested with detectable pesticides" metric. I think given how low of a dose we can detect it seems this isn't that useful. I also would like to see a comparison with natural pesticides and how many are on organic food. In a way i disagree with your analysis (could be my ignorance) of the “percent of samples tested with detectable pesticides” metric. I think given how low of a dose we can detect it seems this isn’t that useful. I also would like to see a comparison with natural pesticides and how many are on organic food.

]]> Comment on Details on the Dirty Dozen by Anastasia Bodnar http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/details-on-the-dirty-dozen/comment-page-1/#comment-6009 Anastasia Bodnar Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:42:31 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3596#comment-6009 Amusingly, just after I published this, my mom sent me <a href="http://www.prevention.com/dirtiestcleanest/?cm_mmc=Spotlight-_-07302010-_-Nutrition%20and%20Recipes-_-12%20Dirtiest%20Fruits%20%26%20Vegetables ">Prevention Magazine's Dirty Dozen article</a>. As least they remind us that more fruits and vegetables are better than less, even if there may be pesticide residues - but they don't tell us this until after they scare the pants off us. Sigh. Amusingly, just after I published this, my mom sent me Prevention Magazine’s Dirty Dozen article. As least they remind us that more fruits and vegetables are better than less, even if there may be pesticide residues – but they don’t tell us this until after they scare the pants off us. Sigh.

]]> Comment on Open House! by Karl Haro von Mogel http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/open-house/comment-page-1/#comment-5988 Karl Haro von Mogel Thu, 29 Jul 2010 23:18:24 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3603#comment-5988 Thanks for taking over for a bit, Frank! I think a page describing how this all works would be great in the future, in particular some of the new bells and whistles we're cooking up. :) Thanks for taking over for a bit, Frank! I think a page describing how this all works would be great in the future, in particular some of the new bells and whistles we’re cooking up. :)

]]> Comment on Open House! by Anastasia Bodnar http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/open-house/comment-page-1/#comment-5987 Anastasia Bodnar Thu, 29 Jul 2010 22:45:59 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3603#comment-5987 Wonderful pictures! And I just love that Flickr plugin. I really need to make a "thanks to the lovely people who make the tech that lets us make this blog" page. Wonderful pictures!
And I just love that Flickr plugin. I really need to make a “thanks to the lovely people who make the tech that lets us make this blog” page.

]]> Comment on Bt FAQ by Ewan R http://www.biofortified.org/2010/06/bt-faq/comment-page-1/#comment-5979 Ewan R Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:28:12 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3501#comment-5979 And a leading cause of death would be "teeth" (to paraphrase Terry Pratchett) And a leading cause of death would be “teeth” (to paraphrase Terry Pratchett)

]]> Comment on Open House! by MaryM http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/open-house/comment-page-1/#comment-5978 MaryM Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:32:27 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3603#comment-5978 The one looking at the fish cracks me up. The one looking at the fish cracks me up.

]]> Comment on Bt FAQ by Anastasia Bodnar http://www.biofortified.org/2010/06/bt-faq/comment-page-1/#comment-5959 Anastasia Bodnar Wed, 28 Jul 2010 19:41:24 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3501#comment-5959 I'm always curious about the whole "mother nature knows best" idea. Nature is a pretty horrible place. It's full of disease and death. If we didn't use the big brains that "nature" gave us, we'd still be living in caves, lucky if we live to be 30 years old. I’m always curious about the whole “mother nature knows best” idea. Nature is a pretty horrible place. It’s full of disease and death. If we didn’t use the big brains that “nature” gave us, we’d still be living in caves, lucky if we live to be 30 years old.

]]> Comment on Genetically Modified Foods Could Be A Solution To The Effects Of Climate Change by Eric Baumholder http://www.biofortified.org/2010/07/genetically-modified-foods-could-be-a-solution-to-the-effects-of-climate-change/comment-page-1/#comment-5936 Eric Baumholder Tue, 27 Jul 2010 22:15:27 +0000 http://www.biofortified.org/?p=3550#comment-5936 "Earth is a sustainable planet" is, in the annals of 'sustainability', the boldest claim I have ever heard. I am of course in favor of GM crops, but the clamor surrounding 'peak oil', 'overpopulation', 'desecration of pristine wilderness', 'poisoning the atmosphere with CO2', and so on, drown out the message that things are sustainable here. But this is a two-edged sword. There is no shortage of learned pundits who claim that Earth is sustainable <i>only</i> if we impose limits on oil, population, deforestation, and CO2. (Which is a greatly abbreviated litany.) Recently, great strides in the definition of 'sustainability' have been achieved, but the term remains a plaything of misanthropists, who must be opposed at every turn. For our sake. “Earth is a sustainable planet” is, in the annals of ‘sustainability’, the boldest claim I have ever heard. I am of course in favor of GM crops, but the clamor surrounding ‘peak oil’, ‘overpopulation’, ‘desecration of pristine wilderness’, ‘poisoning the atmosphere with CO2′, and so on, drown out the message that things are sustainable here.

But this is a two-edged sword.

There is no shortage of learned pundits who claim that Earth is sustainable only if we impose limits on oil, population, deforestation, and CO2. (Which is a greatly abbreviated litany.)

Recently, great strides in the definition of ‘sustainability’ have been achieved, but the term remains a plaything of misanthropists, who must be opposed at every turn.

For our sake.

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