A leader in the international environmental field says modern agricultural technology such as genetically modified crops is one of the best tools available for improving the health and living standards of some 800 million people in the world who live in poverty.

Dr. Patrick Moore, a co-founder of Greenpeace, who is today an avid spokesman against the radical views and extremist activities of that organization, told producers in Edmonton that biotechnology is the key to not only producing more food, but  can also  enhance the quality and nutritional value of foods critical to millions of people in developing countries.

In an hour-long presentation to nearly 1,500 producers attending the 2008 FarmTech Conference, Moore discredited the programs and policies of Greenpeace saying it has become an organization of environmental extremists who are “anti” everything including anti-human beings.

He says it has grown into a multi-million dollar, worldwide organization that operates on programs and policies which have no basis in science or fact. Greenpeace spreads misinformation largely geared toward increasing public fear and anxiety, which ultimately helps to further Greenpeace causes.

“When we started Greenpeace in the 1960s the basic objective was to raise awareness of environmental issues,” says Moore, 61, who lives in Vancouver.  “And I felt we accomplished that. But there came a point over the years where there were a number of things about their approach and strategy on a daily basis that I could not agree with. So I left.

”I made a change from the politics of confrontation to the politics of negotiation,” he said.

Today Moore is still a strong environmentalist and conservationist, but he says there are too many myths and too much misinformation that needs to be corrected.

He touched on a number of major topics during this presentation. He said there may be climate change and the world may be warming, “but it has been warming since the last Ice Age,” says Moore.

He says there are mixed scientific views and weak evidence that suggests human activity is the cause of the current global warming. That doesn’t mean there isn’t value in reducing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions, but society doesn’t need to follow the drastic measures promoted by Greenpeace.

Moore said agricultural technology and biotechnological is a valuable tool in helping feed the world and produce food with enhanced vitamins and other nutrients which can improve the health of people living in third world countries.

Moore said that contrary to Greenpeace and the David Suzuki Foundation, salmon farming in Canada produces an important  healthy food product. Although there are areas of the world where deforestation is an issue, overall the area of world forest has not changed in the last 100 years.

He said producing biofuel from cellulose materials, such as wood fibre and other plants, may be the best option in the long run to reduce reliance on fossil fuels.  Nuclear and hydro energy are clean, safe technologies for meeting world energy needs.

Among the key issues he says is a need to further develop the renewable energy industry; the need to control world population growth; the need to control urban sprawl over good agricultural land; and a need to reduce world poverty, disease and malnutrition.

“When people ask me what is the greatest environmental issue today I tell them poverty,” says Moore. “Because proverty leads far more to the destruction of the environment than wealth does. You just have to look around the world at some of the poorest countries where people try to eek out a living. Countries where people don’t have the money and resources to replant the forest after it has been deforested.”