Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
The binary code (having/not having or being/not being) “is the condition
of the system's being set in motion and keeping it going.”
40
The circumstances of the Brazilian economy, including its agricul-
tural activities with a large production of soya, corn, and cotton, which
could potentially benefit from biotechnology, showed the importance of
Economics. The reduced costs that would contribute to improve Brazil's
international competitiveness emphasized this system. Thus, there were
difficulties in making the other systems relevant to allow communication
between them and Economics.
The complexity of the GM crops debate and its solution require a
policy that deals with the different languages of the connected systems
(Ecology, Economics, Science, and Politics). The infrastructure linked
to GM crops demands, as Science shows, different long-term experi-
ments to measure the long-term effects of pesticide exposure on non-
target organisms. Economics tries to solve immediate allocation prob-
lems and doesn't understand long-term effects (externalities). Ecology,
on the other hand, demands knowledge of long-term effects to guaran-
tee biodiversity conservation, in the present and in the future. Unfortu-
nately, Brazilian policy makers deal only with Economics (the regular
market approach) thinking exclusively of maximizing profit in the allo-
cation of GM crops that are ready to be traded.
Therefore, Brazilian politics was not able to pursue such an elaborate
policy. There was a lack of public opinion and pressure in favor of safe
standards.
41
In the beginning of the public debate about GM crops, the
main issue was Science; by 2003, Economy. Simultaneously, there was a
discussion shift from preventive to promotional policies regarding GM
crops in the Brazilian media. By focusing on the economic gains rather
than on the risk aspects, and by not promoting a “social amplification of
40
LUHMANN, Niklas.
Ecological communication
. Translation of John Bednarz Jr.
(Chicago: University of Chicago, 1989), 51.
41
“Political resonance arises because 'public opinion,' as the true sovereign, suggests
the chance of re-election.” (Luhmann, Niklas.
Ecological communication
. Trans. John
Bednarz Jr. (Chicago: University of Chicago, 1989), 89).
