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Organic Connections has just released an interview with Thierry Vrain, Ph.D., former biotech engineer who now speaks out against the risks of genetically engineered foods. Vrain worked 30 years as a research scientist for the Canadian government where he conducted studies on agriculture modification. He was director of the biotechnology department at the Pacific Agri-Food Research Centre in Summerland, BC. Today, Thierry Vrain has retired to a farm, is a gardener, a teacher, and a advocate for organic gardening—from soil health to GMO awareness.
Vrain: &#;When I hear we need genetic engineering to feed the world, I cringe. It turns out that there is no increase in yield, no decrease use of pesticides, and the process is of highly questioned safety. Even if genetic engineering was perfectly safe, I still question it because of genetic pollution. Organic crops and foods are becoming contaminated. I’m also concerned about contamination of the environment with antibiotic resistant genes. Every GM crop has these genes. The preliminary evidence we have is that bacteria in the soil and in the human gut are capable of picking t
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Dr. Vrain is a retired soil biologist and genetic engineer. He spent his whole research career with the Department of Agriculture in Canada.
He was the head of a research group of 40 professionals in Biotechnology, the Vice President and President of national and international associations of soil biologists, and an Associate Editor of several scientific Journals in Europe and in the USA.
His research covered biological control, chemical control and resistance breeding, biochemistry, genetic engineering, and molecular taxonomy of nematodes. He pioneered the use of non coding ribosomal DNA sequences to identify nematodes. His universal DNA primers were used to identify all plant parasitic nematodes, entomophagous nematodes, and even fungi.
He has published the results of his collaborations with 57 researchers from 14 countries and states in over refereed publications, book chapters, conference abstracts, and technical summaries.
He left the public service in and retired on Vancouver Island in , where he established a small herbal farm. He is now raising the alarm about the current excesses of the gene revolution and chemical agriculture, particularly
Interesting interview with a man who changed his mind on GMO but who, unlike Mark Lynas, a GMO convert who went the other way, understands the science.
GMO spokesman turned GMO whistleblower followed the science
Interview by Tsiporah Grignon
Common Ground, OctoberDr. Thierry Vrain, a former soil biologist and genetic scientist, worked for Agriculture Canada for 30 years. He was the designated spokesperson to assure the public of the safety of GMO crops. Since retiring 10 years ago, after taking into account scientific evidence ignored by most of the bio-tech industry promoters and government regulators, Dr. Vrain has reversed that position and now warns of the dangers from GMOs.
Tsiporah Grignon: Was there a pivotal event when you reversed your position on GMOs?
Dr. Thierry Vrain: As a scientist working for the government, I didn’t question the status quo or dogma. I just did my work and was the person designated from the institute to reassure the public, so I was very busy. When I retired, my wife and I began an organic farm where I started to discover new things about soil biology never taught in graduate school. Not being on the payroll anymore, I had the freedom to
Let’s begin with a little science, courtesy of Dr. Thierry Vrain, research biologist:
“When we started with genetic engineering in the s, the science was based on the theory that one gene produces one protein. But we now know, since the human genome project, that a gene can create more than one protein. The insertion of genes in the genome through genetic engineering interrupts the coding sequence of the DNA, creating truncated, rogue proteins, which can cause unintended effects. It’s an invasive technology.”
Why is this important? It’s important because these days many common foods are “genetically engineered” to increase crop yield and to become more resistant to insecticides, both laudable goals. But many people, including Vrain, now believe that the “rogue proteins” being used are potentially unhealthy and even dangerous to anyone who eats those foods.
Thierry Vrain knows what he's talking about: He’s a former genetic engineer himself, with a doctoral degree in plant physiology. He worked for 30 years as a research scientist for the Canadian government, genetically engineering small fruits and potatoes, and directed the biotechnology department at Briti
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