Concurrently in Guadalajara, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) hosted an invite only international conference titled “Agricultural Biotechnology in Developing Countries.” Among the movement to protect native crops, many view the FAO as an operating arm of big agriculture, in this case genetically engineered seed companies.  Now that the European market is closed to genetically engineered seeds, the Latin American market is the most attractive area for expansion.

The theme of the “Transgénicos? No, Gracias.” conference was how to protect diversity: diversity of seeds, crop planting, and culture. Scientists, anthropologists and campesinos stressed how important diversity is to our collective survival, particularly in a time of increasing contamination and climatic change.

Mesoamerica (Mexico extending to the northern portion of Central America) is the genetic home to maíz where corn varieties have been evolving for thousands of years. Many consider the prospect of genetically engineered corn a threat that extends to most aspects of life.  Every year, genetically engineered corn erases thousands of years of native corn evolution.  And that means the potential loss of many types of corn: there is blue corn, black corn, white corn, yellow corn, sweet corn, and the list goes on.  There are, in fact, between 55-60 species of corn in Mexico and it serves as the basis of food, medicine, artisan projects, and more.

Transgenetic corn was first discovered in Oaxaca in 2001 and they believed the contamination came from US food aid, but it remains undetermined.  Two other sources of contamination are families based in the US sending genetically engineered seeds to Mexico and the government providing genetically engineered seeds without proper labeling. These seeds are difficult to control, identify, and contain. The looming question is, “How do you preserve this rich cultural and food diversity in the face of such an elusive opponent?”

Growing genetically modified corn was illegal in Mexico up until last year, 2009.  Now there are “experimental fields” in Sonora, Sinaloa, Chihuaha, Tamaulipas, and Jalisco.  During pollination, cross contamination is extremely high, especially with corn. Many in Mexico are understandably concerned that the experiments cannot be contained.

“Sin Maíz, No Hay Pais.”  Without corn, there is no country. Here is a short video clip of a public hearing against Monsanto held in Guadalajara.

The movement to protect genetic and cultural diversity here in Mexico is impressive and moving.  Michael Pollan writes in Omnivore’s Dilemma that many people in the US have lost cultural connections to food. I originally wrote this article for writer April Davila, who is trying to live a month without consuming Monsanto related products and is finding it very challenging to access information about the origin of food, seeds, and clothes. It is often difficult to access information about where our food comes from and what it contains.  If we had deeper cultural connections to food, perhaps we would be more motivated to understand it and protect it.

If you would like to learn more about the movement to protect corn in Mexico, visit Red en Defensa del Maíz or Sin Maíz No Hay País.  For an English website, there is also the North American based organization Vía Campesina.

I am here in Guadalajara, co-directing an organization that is creating a documentary on water issues and teaching video workshops.  You can check out what we’re up to here, follow us on Facebook, and/or check us out on Twitter.