Back to Article Monday, April 11th, 2005 Biotech battle stirs up California wine country Bill Lambrecht/St. Louis Post-Dispatch SANTA ROSA, Calif. - In the heart of California wine country, Sonoma County vintner George Davis claims that his "biodynamic" growing method summons cosmic forces to enliven grapes for his zinfandels and chardonnays. His Porter Creek Vineyard, situated on prime soils valued at $100,000 an acre, eschews chemicals in favor of manure, composting and ultra-organic farming that aims to enhance the spirituality of consumers, as well as their wine. So it's no surprise that Davis stands foursquare against tinkering with crops though genetic engineering, which would be banned in Sonoma County for 10 years under an initiative cleared recently for the November ballot. "Monsanto came in with their big ideas and wants to release them on the world. It's just happening too fast," said Davis, 63, in reference to the St. Louis-based pioneer in plant sciences. Davis' sentiments appear to be in the minority among Sonoma County grape growers. Citing potential rewards of biotechnology, leaders of the Sonoma County Grape Growers Association voted last week to oppose the ballot issue. Nonetheless, a spirited debate over biotechnology is under way in the county, an arena unlike any other where the battle has been waged. The Sonoma County initiative heads a list of state and local public policy debates involving biotechnology that are being closely monitored by the industry and its critics. In Vermont last week, the state Senate passed legislation designed to place the liability for any problems resulting from modified seeds with the manufacturer, rather than the farmer. The bill goes to the Vermont House. On the other side of the coin, at least five states - Pennsylvania, Iowa, Georgia, North Dakota and South Dakota - have adopted legislation since November that precludes local governments from banning gene-altered crops. Similar legislation is pending or awaiting the signature of governors in at least five other states. The success of ballot initiatives in California last year triggered the industry effort in state legislatures. "It would be a real problem to have to fight county by county or city by city across the country," said Allan Noe, spokesman for CropLife America, which represents Monsanto and its rivals in the biotech industry. But Britt Bailey, director of Environmental Commons, an advocacy group in Mendocino County, Calif., argued that the industry was waging a stealth campaign to take control away from local governments. "People need to understand that local decision-making is being pulled out from beneath them," she said. Last year, the California counties of Mendocino, Marin and Trinity approved versions of genetic engineering bans. The industry succeeded in defeating prohibitions that appeared on ballots in San Luis Obispo and Butte counties, and an initiative was pulled in Humbolt County before a vote. In Sonoma County, situated in mountains and lush valleys an hour north of San Francisco, winemaking and the tourism it spawns amount to a $3 billion annual business. Amid alternating quaint and tony settings, the county is populated with self-described "ex-hippies" made good who equate healthful living with organic farming. Monsanto and its allies have sought without success to be part of the organic culture since their gene-splicing techniques went commercial in the mid-1990s. After a campaign by activists and consumers, engineered products were forbidden to carry the Agriculture Department's certified organic label. Biotechnology offers nothing at present for grapes. But the prospect of one day engineering insect resistance to protect vines against pests is among the reasons several grape growers said they planned to oppose the ballot initiative. Steve Dutton, whose Dutton Estate Winery is known for its chardonnay, said he hoped the genetic engineers would be able to modify grapes so they can resist disease spread by the glassy-winged sharpshooter, a leaf-hopping insect. Dutton said he worried that a ban on genetic engineering in Sonoma County would put his operation at a competitive disadvantage. "There are a lot of people around here who are organic-minded and nature-minded who believe that anything that is processed is bad. But if they did come up with a genetically engineered grapevine that worked, they could plant it everywhere else but not here," he said. Defeating the initiative could present a challenge for the biotech industry, which says it intends to keep a low profile in Sonoma County. In Mendocino County immediately north, the industry spent more than $600,000 in opposing the ballot initiative. But that may have backfired by fostering the perception that the biotech barons were nosing around in local business. "They shot themselves in the foot in Mendocino County," said Sonoma County Farm Bureau head Lex McCorvey. "We recognize that this is going to have to be a campaign of family farmers. We're not going to take any money from CropLife America." Supporters of the 10-year ban plan to rely in their campaign on a staunchly anti-biotech film, "The Future of Food" by Deborah Koons Garcia, widow of the late Jerry Garcia of the rock group Grateful Dead. The 90-minute film focuses on what it regards as Monsanto's heavy-handed dealings with farmers and its use of political influence to bring biotech products to the market. Daniel Solnit, who is coordinating the campaign for the ban, noted the popularity of filmmaker Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11," a blend of documentary and propaganda that was harshly critical of President George W. Bush's administration and family. After a showing of the Garcia film in the Sonoma County town of Healdsburg recently, Solnit said his group intended to use it as a tool to organize and raise money. Monsanto spokesman Chris Horner asserted that the Garcia film "rehashes a lot of old claims and presents them as fact when they're not the least bit factual." Horner said Monsanto had no plan to become actively involved in the Sonoma County fight but expected farmers who can benefit from Monsanto products to present their case strongly. They will need to be persuasive to convince some of Sonoma County's vintners. One of them is Lou Preston, who showed up at the Flying Goat Coffeehouse in Healdsburg to see the Garcia film. Preston, who exemplifies Sonoma County's organic farmers, converted not just his tractors but his 1960 Mercedes sedan to run on used vegetable oil. Preston, of Dry Creek Vineyards, uses no chemicals on soils that grow grapes, olives and fruit. On April 1, his winery proudly announced that it had achieved full certification as an organic operation. "I was once part of that class of people who had answers to every problem, real or imagined. But I came to understand that scientists don't have perfect knowledge," said Preston, 63. SOURCE Back to Article