The Safe Seed Pledge is a part of a larger CRG program to educate the public about the issues of the corporatization of agriculture and the risks of widespread genetic engineering of crops. The Safe Seed Pledge joins non-genetically altered seed sellers together to make a statement about their stance on genetic engineering and also provides a resource for consumers who wish to buy and plant GE-free seeds.

Many genetically altered crops are sold in our supermarkets without our knowledge and consent. Studies show that genetically engineered crops may cause serious environmental problems as they impact insects, crop yields, pesticide treatment, and genetic drift.

The biotech industry asserts that monoculture is better. However, diversity in our crops is the key to the survival of the plants. Agricultural companies are choosing which crops are valued and letting the older, more diverse varieties die off. In native varieties, diversity allows for some of the crop to survive a blight or virus, but when the entire crop is identical, all plants are affected equally.

When genetically altered crops are affected by disease, the seed companies must find a plant with the attributes to protect that crop from the current blight or disease and try to add this attribute into the altered seed’s genetics. Without this addition, they will lose the entire crop to the blight and effectively destroy a food source. As farmers move to monoculturing, they must ignore, and therefore possibly kill off, the other, non-engineered crops, which, ironically, might be needed when the genetically altered crop fails.

Traditionally, farmers try to maintain a delicate balance of diversity, which can overcome problems caused by unexpected pests and blights. Biotech companies are now degrading this diversity through selective genetic engineering of the seeds that develop into the plants we eat. This practice affects not only the present but the future as well. It is necessary to protect crop diversity in order to protect our food sources.

In 1999, CRG and a coalition of seed companies created a “Safe Seed Pledge.” The Safe Seed Pledge is a statement offered to seed companies that intend not to buy or sell genetically engineered seeds. Seed companies sign the pledge, then print the Safe Seed Pledge in their seed catalogs, along with vital information about the quality and content of their products that growers and consumers can easily use to inform their purchasing choices. As of April 2001, more than 88 seed companies have signed the pledge. They range from large seed companies to family-owned businesses and from companies that distribute heirloom varieties to full crop seed. The pledge gives seed companies a chance to voice their concerns about GE seeds and creates an avenue to educate gardeners and farmers. The Safe Seed Pledge reads:

Agriculture and seeds provide the basis upon which our lives depend. We must protect this foundation as a safe and genetically stable source for future generations. For the benefit of all farmers, gardeners and consumers who want an alternative, we pledge that we do not knowingly buy or sell genetically engineered seeds or plants. The mechanical transfer of genetic material outside of natural reproductive methods and between genera, families or kingdoms, poses great biological risks as well as economic, political, and cultural threats. We feel that genetically engineered varieties have been insufficiently tested prior to public release. More research and testing are necessary to further assess the potential risks of genetically engineered seeds. Further, we wish to support agricultural progress that leads to healthier soils, genetically diverse agricultural ecosystems and ultimately people and communities.

CRG’s web page lists these seed companies so that consumers can find out where to get non-GE seeds, and a printed list is also available from the CRG office. CRG currently receives 2 to 3 new signers a week.

As gardeners and farmers, we can take action by buying from seed companies that have signed the pledge. Planting and protecting diversity in our own gardens is a political action that can have great consequence. Also, you can ask seed companies that you deal with whether they’ve signed the pledge and let them know that you would like them to sign it.

This action can be a catalyst for change. Public pressure to sign the pledge is a concrete way to express concern about genetically altered materials in food. We can each have a part in the drive to educate and empower others and ourselves about this important issue.

Amber Beland was the Safe Seed Project Intern for the academic year 2000-2001. She is a student at the Harvard Divinity School.