Word: bst
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...poses a dangerous threat to the prosperity of dairy farmers and the wholesome image of "nature's perfect food." The product is bovine somatotropin, a natural protein found in cattle that has been artificially mass-produced in the labs of several pharmaceutical firms. When injected into dairy cows, BST can increase their milk production up to 25%. But would the use of BST create a milk glut that could drive down dairy prices? And would consumers view milk from BST-treated cows as artificial and somehow tainted...
Those questions have ignited debate over BST, which is the first major product that the fledgling biotechnology industry has developed for agriculture. The hormone has been used in several West European nations, the Soviet Union and South Africa. But opposition is intense. The European Parliament, for example, has recommended that its member countries prohibit the sale of meat or milk from BST-treated cows, and two provinces in Canada have temporarily halted the distribution of such products. In the U.S. the Food and Drug Administration is considering whether to approve the use of BST amid rising protests from concerned dairy...
...four U.S. companies that make BST -- Monsanto, Eli Lilly, Upjohn and American Cyanamid -- are having trouble understanding why it is so controversial. They point out that BST is a natural hormone produced by a cow's pituitary gland and present in all milk. In fact, they assert, milk from BST-treated cows has no more BST than regular milk. The companies contend that BST injections would merely enable dairy farmers to produce the same amount of milk with fewer cows. "BST is about efficiency," asserts Monsanto spokesman Laurence O'Neill. Says Stephen White, BST project manager for American Cyanamid...
Others are not so sure. "In this business, if the production goes up, the price goes down," complains John Zonneveld, a dairy farmer in Laton, Calif. "The only guy who's going to gain from BST is the guy who manufactures the stuff...
...officials are worried about tampering with milk at a time when the public is already nervous about food safety. "You're monkeying around with a product that has a natural image," warns Adri Boudewyn, spokesman for the California Milk Advisory Board. The dairy industry is concerned that critics of BST will try to turn public opinion against the hormone. Anti-BST television and radio commercials have already been produced but have not yet aired. One 30-second TV spot, created by Jeremy Rifkin, the flamboyant Washington-based opponent of most biotechnology, features a glass of milk with a hypodermic syringe...