Agriculture biotechnology is safe, helps feed world

We live in the most generous nation in the world. It is the American farmer and rancher who answer the call for humanitarian need again and again.

Agriculture biotechnology has enabled us to grow more with less, preserving our resources and environment while enabling farmers and ranchers to feed the world. This technology has also allowed food to be more affordable. Kansans know better than anyone that biotechnology is at work all around us.

But some Americans want this to stop and have us go back in time. They believe biotechnology isn’t safe. They don’t stop and consider the consequences of a world already suffering from humanitarian crisis. The immediate consequences would be devastating in nations already struggling to feed their people.

At home, the absence of biotechnology would change our marketplace. Food would be more expensive. Our environment would not sustain demand.

What about farmers using biotechnology? They have decided what is best for their yields, fields and streams. They have planned years of their operations and made management decisions based on these tools. They will lose customers as people turn away from their crop. That is already happening.

And why? Because food marketing has taken the place of sound science in American popular culture.

Misinformation is spread on social media. Using fear, this marketing campaign preys on skeptical and affluent Americans and has caused them to ignore the Environmental Protection Agency, the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 100 Nobel laureates and the billions of dollars spent on scientific research to ensure biotechnology is safe.

This misinformation has become so pervasive in our culture that states have passed laws to label products containing biotechnology as if they are hazardous to public health. The word “biotechnology” has become taboo. The truth is that biotechnology labeling laws benefit no one except those who can expect to profit from them – and their lawyers.

To stop the growth of an un-navigable patchwork of state laws threatening to grow more confusing and detrimental by the day, I fought for a solution, just as Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Wichita, did in the House.

After weeks of negotiation with Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., the ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, we have a bill that protects the use of biotechnology and ensures consumers have access to the information they want.

I am proud our agreement does not denigrate agriculture biotechnology. Under our proposal, if you want to find information on foods made by using agriculture biotechnology, you can, no matter your location.

Keep this image in your mind: Our bill will prevent damage to our affordable and abundant food marketplace in America and will help us to continue to take the necessary steps to prevent malnutrition and starvation as well as feeding Americans and a troubled and hungry world.

This story was originally published July 7, 2016 at 12:01 AM with the headline "Agriculture biotechnology is safe, helps feed world."