A true alternative to glyphosate exists
An alternative to glyphosate already exists! It is called (local, small-scale) organic agriculture!
Honestly, I don`t get the current outcry about the prolongation of the glyphosate license. Or better said, I only get it partially. Of course I understand that people are annoyed with politics succumbing to the influence of big lobbies and putting profit above public health again.
However, in my opinion, nobody (or almost) HAS to eat foods treated with glyphosate. It is a choice, even if sometimes it doesn`t seem like that.
If everybody who now is so angry about glyphosate being prolonged simply stopped buying and consuming foods that are treated with it, THAT`s what would make a real difference. Just like it would make a real difference if everybody who is so upset about animal torture simply stopped buying and consuming cheap meat.
But as long as we continue to point fingers to the politicians, hoping that they will “save” us from the “evil” corporations, without at the same time looking at our own behavior, nothing is going to change. The corporations (and the farmers) do what they do because there are people validating what they do by buying their products. That is simple market logic. If we want to continue to do what we`ve always done (i.e. buy cheap food), we have to assume the negative consequences that come with that behavior.
Of course it would help if the political framework was different. I absolutely get that some people cannot afford better food and of course it is wrong that they have to eat toxins. But let`s be honest, most of those who are now complaining would be able to reallocate a part of their budget from iphones, shoes and travels to better food. (And if you still believe that we need industrial farming to feed the world, please look into all that research stating the opposite.)
In my opinion, prohibiting it would have been similar to taking away someone`s medication without offering him a real alternative to address his symptoms. Not sufficient. Of course doing so would force the patient (or the farmers) to look for alternatives, and it could indeed be, that some of them would indeed stumble upon the true cure to the problem. But that is not very likely, because nothing has changed in their mindset. They would still look for something to fight their symptoms, and might simply end up replacing the former medication with another one. Yes, maybe the new medication would be less toxic or even “natural” (and maybe not), but even then, the real problem remains, which is that we continue treating symptoms and not root causes.
A true alternative to treating disease with pills exists, just like a true alternative to glyphosate exists. But it is not to be found in the current system. It requires a CHANGE of system, a change of thinking, a change of habits.
So instead of feeling like a helpless victim and waiting for politics, take responsibility and change your habits first: Stop going to the supermarket and start buying your food from local, small-scale organic farmers. Because TRUE alternatives to a glyphosate-depending agriculture DO exist, but they need our support if we want them to be the norm rather than the exception!
