Herbicide is what’s for dinner
Desiccants are more deadly than plants. Herbicides such as glyphosate kill bacteria. Herbicides are also known as antibiotics. Our gut bacteria is sensitive to antibiotics. Our immune system is stable when our microbes remain healthy. When microbes become disturbed, illnesses like Alzheimer’s or celiac can occur.
As I drive down a grid-road in central Saskatchewan, an insect-like machine approaches me in dust. The cab is suspended 8 feet above the ground by at least 6-foot-tall tires, and has wing-like extensions folded on each side. Should I drive under or around it?
The harvest is in full swing, and the high clearance sprayer is on it’s way to desiccate an entire field. It’s possible that desiccation is the most common farming practice you haven’t heard of. Farmers desiccate their crops by spraying herbicide on them. This kills the plants all at once, making it easier to cut. In essence, desiccation speeds up plant aging. Prior to desiccation crops had to naturally dry out at the end season. In Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, most conventional crops are now desiccated. You probably don’t know that the majority of your food today was desiccated.
Mike Shewchuk leaps off his swather when I enter his farmyard. His blond hair and robust stride, which would not have been out of place fifty years ago, are typical of a young farmer. Together with his father, uncles and brother, he farms 15 000 acres per hour just outside Saskatoon in Saskatchewan. Recently, they received a 100-year farm award for farming the land continuously since the early 1900s.
Source:
http://nautil.us/issue/66/clockwork/herbicide-is-whats-for-dinner
