In a June 22 letter to the editor of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, ASA President Danny Murphy responded to a recently released study claiming a link between feed made from biotech soybean meal and stomach inflammation in hogs. The validity of the study’s claims and its methodology have since been questioned widely, as has the objectivity of the scientists and farmers that authored the study.

The study’s main author, Dr. Judy Carman, issued a statement pointing to the study as evidence of the need for further examination of the health impacts of biotechnology, a charge Murphy answered directly in his response. "[T]he further investigation Carman calls for already exists in droves," said Murphy. "Hundreds of existing studies look at the potential health impacts of biotech crops in human and animal applications, but likely much to Carman’s dismay, each says the same thing: Biotech crops are as safe as their conventional counterparts. Given this mountain of preexisting science, it would appear that Carman is less interested in "more investigation" and more interested in investigation that agrees with her anti-biotech viewpoint. That’s not science; it’s cleverly-cloaked advocacy. Advocacy is based in emotion and ideology, while to maintain its integrity, science must be based in real, tangible fact."

Murphy’s full response can be found at the Post-Dispatch website.