Would I eat the GreenLeaf potatoes? No. I am a firm believer in doing what is best for the environment. Once something enters the biological web, it spreads all around, affecting many different levels of life. The Bt strand of bacteria that resides within the GreenLeaf potatoes is lethal to monarch butterflies. “When monarch caterpillars eat milkweed leaves dusted with Bt pollen, they sicken and die.” (Pollan, 211) How did the Bt pollen get onto the milkweed leaves? Bees and other animals that spread pollen may alight on the milkweed, carrying the pollen from NewLeaf potato flowers with them.
“Uncertainty is the theme that unifies most of the questions now being raised about agricultural biotechnology by environmentalists and scientists. By planting millions of acres of genetically altered plants, we’re introducing something novel into the environment and the food chain, the consequences of which are not completely understood.” (210) In nature, every living thing relies on balance. If one little thing throws off that balance, disaster is likely to ensue.