\\\'Misinformation\\\' on planting of Bt. brinjal

I was concerned to read the misinformation printed by The Financial Express on the planting of Bt brinjal by rural farmers: Pest-resistant Bt brinjal comes under pest attack, as reported by Yasir Wardad.

The farmer, Haidul Islam, did not make these statements (http://btbrinjal.tumblr. com/) and your journalist made no effort to get the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institutes input to his claims, probably because he knew the claims were false. This is very shoddy journalism.

While the local population might be familiar with poor reporting from FE, this knowledge is not shared overseas. From our experience, this false report will be used by activists to spread the misinformation to many countries, especially developing countries. The report will scare local decision-makers and prevent local farmers from accessing the benefits now enjoyed by farmers in Bangladesh. Higher standard of journalism from your staff is expected.

Muffy Koch

muffykoch@globalbiosafety.ca