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I'm reminded of the 1950's...TV newscasts showing clouds of DDT sprayed on a clueless public, compromising their health and contaminating the environment for decades to come, as Rachel Carson writes "Silent Spring." But the time is now, other toxic pesticides have joined the ranks in our wayward war against mosquitoes, and the Rachels of today are drowned out by a media rushing to sound the alarm, rather than report the news.

Zambia is expected to import genetically modified maize (corn) from the United States to feed its 2.3 million starving citizens, according to the Biotechnology Trust of Africa, a regional charitable trust. Zambia has decided not to follow in the footsteps of hungry Zimbabwe, which two months ago rejected 10,000 metric tons of genetically modified maize from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Environment and anti-globalization organizations worldwide called on all citizens suffering from 'U.S. injustice' to give up drinking American soft drinks, especially Coca-Cola, for the day of Monday, July 22, 2002.

The Earth Summit in Rio de Janiero Brazil 1992 was supposed to result in countries across the world restructuring their development in order to guarantee sustainability for future generations. After 10 years no positive changes can be seen. The exploitation of natural resources and the destruction of the environment continue, access to productive resources has become more difficult.

The controversy over genetically engineered crops is disrupting U.S. efforts to provide food aid to starving people. The government of Zimbabwe and citizens groups in Bolivia, Guatemala and Nicaragua are resisting U.S. supplied foods that contain transgenic corn, or maize. Citizen's groups say the GMO crops are not proven safe.

ROME -- At 3:00 AM on Monday morning the United States stood alone among all nations of the world in blocking further discussion of the draft text of the declaration that governments will sign at the World Food Summit. What was leading the U.S. to stop the all night negotiating session? First, the U.S. wanted all references to ''food as a human right'' to be deleted, and second, the U.S. wanted strong language saying that genetically modified (GM) crops are a key way to end hunger. The Third World nations organized in the Group of 77 wanted mandatory language on the Right to Food, while Europe and Canada held out for the compromise of a voluntary Code of Conduct. No other nation felt strongly that GM crops should receive prominence.

BRUSSELS, Belgium -- Farmers would face higher, and in some cases unsustainable, production costs if genetically engineered crops were commercially grown on a large scale basis in Europe, according to a secret European Union study leaked to Greenpeace.

The Alliance for a Corporate-Free UN is a global network of human rights, environment and development groups working to address undue corporate influence in the United Nations, and to support UN initiatives to hold corporations accountable on issues of human rights, labor rights and the environment.

This articles lists the world's seven largest agrochemical companies and according to 2001 sales reports, published in Agrow: World Crop Protection News the gap in sales between these companies has narrowed. Syngenta continued to maintain highest revenues, with nearly US$5.4 billion in pesticide and seed sales. However, Bayer's anticipated purchase of Aventis CropScience (formerly Rhone-Poulenc and Hoechst/AgrEvo) may increase Bayer's 2002 sales to over US$6 billion.

Over the last two years, thousands of people have gathered to counter the annual conventions of the biotechnology industry in Boston and San Diego. This year, people will be converging on Toronto to broaden the biojustice movement and challenge the biotechnology industry and their vision for our future. It will be a gathering to learn, strategize and network about genetic engineering in agriculture and pharmaceuticals, biowarfare, genetic and non-genetic discrimination, trade regimes and corporate control, patenting of life and more. This event is timed to challenge the industry's annual convention BIO2002, Toronto, June 9-12.

From golden rice to anti-viral tomatoes, is the biotech industry's third generation good medicine or good marketing? And, activists ask, what are the environmental consequences?

Mexican farmers say their crops are contaminated by GM corn. At stake: their harvest, native seeds and very livelihood.

Nature magazine's flip-flop today over the testing protocols involved in determining GM maize contamination in Mexico is just the latest in a string of absurdities as the scientific community struggles over what to do as genetically-modified germplasm invades the genetic homelands of the world's food supply.

Farmer, environmental, indigenous, and consumer groups will stage protests and hold press conferences across North and South America the week of April 10-17 -- launching a Continental Campaign Against Genetically Engineered Corn.

Starbucks serves fair-trade certified drip coffee on campus through Sodexho, the food-services vendor. But with the school considering bids for a new 10-year food-services contract, McDonald and the group he leads, Students for Fair Trade, are pushing for all coffee including decaf and espresso drinks on campus to be fair-trade certified. To be certified, third-party monitors must have confirmed that farmers were paid a fair price for their beans.

TORONTO, Ontario, Canada -- Canada's largest food distributor has made a public commitment to stop marketing chemical pesticides by next spring. Loblaw Companies Limited announced today that it will no longer sell chemical pesticides in all of its 440 garden centers across Canada by 2003.

Scott Good, 42, is the target of a federal lawsuit he fears could break him financially. It is one of about two dozen pending suits, not to mention hundreds of complaints, pursued by Monsanto about alleged misuse of its genetically altered cotton, canola, corn and soybean seeds.

France's highest court upheld on Wednesday a three-month jail sentence for anti-globalization activist Jose Bove over his ransacking of a McDonald's restaurant to protest U.S. trade barriers.

In the sixth article in our series on Global Compact companies, Indian journalist Nityanand Jayaraman looks at the Oslo-based corporation Norsk Hydro, a partner in the Utkal bauxite mine and alumina smelter in Orissa State. He provides evidence that the corporation has violated human rights Principles 1 and 2 of the UN Compact. Nor has the company withdrawn plans for a project that would violate Principle 9 which promotes eco-friendly practices. While the company has put the project on hold for the moment, officials indicate that violations of these principles could resume at any time.

The McDonald's hamburger chain that occupies villages throughout modern-day France has commandeered a Asterix, a national cartoon character, to promote its food as part of a marketing campaign launched yesterday that pushes aside the venerable clown, Ronald McDonald.