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During
a meeting with journalists from around the world Tuesday,
NCGA CEO Rick Tolman, standing, explains how U.S. corn farmers
use biotechnology.
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NCGA
Hosts International Journalists as Part of Biotech Media Tour (6-2-04)
In visits to
the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) and several St. Louis-based
biotechnology companies Tuesday, a group of international journalists
learned how biotechnology is revolutionizing U.S. and global agriculture.
The meetings
were part of the International Biotech Media Tour, an event sponsored
by NCGA, the U.S. Grains Council, Iowa Corn Growers Association,
Nebraska Corn Development, Utilization and Marketing Board and
Illinois Corn Marketing Board. Among other topics, the group
discussed the research and development process, biotech regulations
and the use of biotechnology in farming. Through
the tour, the journalists – from South Africa, Trinidad and
Tobago, China, India, Taiwan, Yemen and Canada – gained
a better understanding of how biotechnology is changing the world.
“The purpose of
the tour is to reach out to people around the world who are reporting
on biotech issues,” said NCGA Director of Biotechnology Nathan
Danielson, who hosted the reporters in St. Louis. “The goal
is to show them the benefits of biotechnology and let them experience
it first-hand.”
The group began its visit
by talking with NCGA CEO Rick Tolman and NCGA staff members at the
association’s St. Louis offices. “The message we shared
with them was that growers can use this technology to their advantage,”
Danielson said. “And we showed them some of the tools growers
use to be good stewards of this technology.”
The reporters then visited
Divergence Inc., a biotechnology firm that develops parasite control
products. The next stop on the tour was the Donald Danforth Plant
Science Center, a major player in maize genomics research. Finally,
the group toured Monsanto’s St. Louis facilities to learn
about the biotech research process. The tour is scheduled to take
the journalists to other biotechnology firms and several Corn Belt
farms where biotech crops are raised.
“They were able
to see that biotechnology offers promise not just for U.S. agriculture,
but for the world at large,” Danielson said. “By touring
these places, they were able to get a good idea about how much research
goes into a biotech product before it ever goes to the public.”
A second group of international
journalists will be in St. Louis for the same tour on June 11. Events
like the tour help to spread the word that biotechnology is safe,
environmentally friendly and economical, Danielson said.
“Many of the journalists
said the tour was beneficial and they seemed excited about the potential
of biotechnology,” he said. “In many of their countries,
attitudes toward biotechnology are based on fear and sensationalism
because fringe groups have taken control of the issue. Hopefully,
the tour will arm these reporters with the knowledge they need to
help dispel myths about biotechnology.”