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"Super Bananas" May Save Millions of Lives In Africa
schwit1 (797399) writes "A super-enriched genetically engineered banana will soon go through its first human trial, which will test its effect on vitamin A levels, Australian researchers said Monday. The project plans to have the special banana varieties — enriched with alpha and beta carotene which the body converts to vitamin A — growing in Uganda by 2020. The bananas are now being sent to the United States, and it is expected that the six-week trial measuring how well they lift vitamin A levels in humans will begin soon."
GENETICALLY ENGINEERED???? That's the boogeyman under the bed!! We must grow organic and all be vegans. If the poor Africans are starving, they just need to go to their local Whole Foods and buy some food.
SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
Isn't the banana population under serious threat because of monoculture? I remember the current banana cultivar - the Cavendish - is under threat because of lack of disease resistance because of monoculture. The previous well used cultivar, the Gros Michel, was replaced because it lost to a disease threat - also due to monoculture. The article didn't mention anything about plant disease resistance.
In all progressive countries, giving ethnic Africans banana is considered to be act of hostile racism.
P.S. No, I don't think so, but I guess that will be the reason of why activists will be murdered and, perhaps, eaten.
Or a really rich charity. Never underestimate the greed of "non-profits."
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
Hamburger meat: $3.72 / pound
Bananas: 59Â / pound
Apples: $1.30 / pound
Romaine lettuce: $2.72 / pound
Ice cream: $5
People who go for instant gratification cut school, walk out on the job when they get mad, and eat Oreos. People who think though the long-term effects of their decisions work their way through college, bite their tongue and discuss problems when calm, eat fruits and vegetables, and exercise - even though they don't WANT to do those things I.the moment, they think long term.
Short-term thinking results in a person being poor and unhealthy. Long term thinking tends to lead to financial success and a healthy lifestyle. I have done, and still do, some of both. I worked late last night, and I'm headed in to my high-paying job, where I'll work hard at serving the needs of the organization. First, I'm going to finish smoking this cigarette. I know each of those choices will probably effect me five years from now.
Perhaps if you'd read TFA, you'd see this:
"The consequences of vitamin A deficiency are dire with 650,000-700,000 children world-wide dying ... each year and at least another 300,000 going blind," he said.
I don't think they have to worry about toxic levels. Esp since toxic levels are 1500IU *per kilo*. So, somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 bananas per meal, 3x per day. And then they might get to toxic levels.
There are two types of people in the world: Those who crave closure
The real story here is 1) this will not reduce malnutrition problems in the third world 2) its an effort to get third world populations hooked on GMOs controlled by large corporations, which will actually increase suffering as it will lead to more expensive food with all of the licensing fees. It wont solve malnutrition because if it were the need for another plant we could simply plant papayas to provide the vitamin A. The solution may as well be these people going back to their more traditional diet, we forget that in the past these people were not malnourished and it is the introduction of the corporate controlled food supply that has already occured that created these problems by altering the traditional diet. What is very likely is that corporate controlled food sources such as vegetable oil replaced locally produced palm oil which may have had the vitamin A.
On to the issue of the safety of the GMOs. Don't you people realize that "opposition to GMOs is anti-science " is pure marketing hogwash being given to you by powerful multinational corporations? The fact is the concerns of the anti-GMO people are based in valid scientific concerns over the safety of GMOs and its long term impact on the biosphere. Is it really that hard for you people to believe that multinationals care only about their own profits and really dont care about the health of people?
The fact is that GMOs pose a very serious danger to the health of the biosphere. Several books have been written on the subject which detail the dangers which are well documented, such as Jeffrey Smiths. The fact is rat studies have shown that GMOs cause kidney and liver damage to name a few. Its only a matter fo time before GMOs are shown to cause cancer. do you people really think that the same corporations that have given us an epidemic of obesity due to heavily manipulated wheat products and overall the trash in the food supply will tell you that GMOs are even worse?
I'm sorry but that is a lame excuse. You don't need a rice cooker or slow cooker. You need a couple of sauce pans, water, heat, and the ability to read instructions.