Stakeholders in the agricultural sector are now calling upon the government to reconsider policies made with regards to genetically modified foods, as they will prove counterproductive in the long run.
The forum was uncomfortable with President Uluru Kenyatta’s move to revive the cotton industry by using Bacillus Thuringiensis.
During the event by by African Biodiversity Network, Greenpeace Africa, Route To Food and Kenya Biodiversity Coalition, the government was advised to rethink the proposal as it is short-sighted.
‘’Genetically engineered seeds and crops have been previously presented by authorities and certain corporates as a panacea to achieving food security in Kenya and Africa at large. However this modified seeds and farms produce represent a corporate takeover of our food system,’’ said KBC’s National Coordinator Ann Maina said.
Use of GMO might have high yields in the short term in the first year but end up ruining the soil, added Layla Liebetrau the Project Lead for RTF initiative.
‘’Every time you put fertilizers that are chemical based you’re killing the nutrients in the soil which means that the next year you are not going to have great yields,’’ she said.
