THE FUTURE OF THE PRESENT: BIOTECHNOLOGY AND THE IMPERFECT PAST OF HUMANITY. WHEN DID THE NIRVANA OF ENDING HUNGER BECOME A FOOD SECURITY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE?

Abstract

The unfortunates had been walking all day. They were tired and hungry. The fictitious hunger of the Juazeiro scrub, which extended from an indecisive red clay dotted with white spots that were bones, portrayed by Graciliano Ramos in Vidas Secas still exists, but now it is predominantly political. More than two centuries have passed since the industrial revolution, and most of humanity is ignorant of the way their food is produced and grown. In the Brazilian agricultural industry, there are no more secrets, modesty or discretion capable of omitting the information that, in intensive production establishments, whether in corn, soy, sugar cane or even in living beings, submission to environments that disregard their demands and instinctive behaviors are repeated, common places. They are inoculators, solubilizers, fertilizers, nematicides, fungicides and several other management practices, sometimes inadequate, from poor hygiene to painful mutilations, surgical castration, tail docking, clipping of teeth, early weaning and overcrowded environments. This unhealthy system motivates the use of antibiotics aimed at curing infections in therapeutic use, but also prophylacticly, including for growth stimulation purposes. However, excessive and reckless use favors and intensifies the natural selection process of microorganisms, causing the emergence of generations of bacteria with multiple resistance. A dramatic health problem experienced in everyday life. The result: Salmonella, Eimeria and Clostridium, among others. Is it the pains of progress? But what about progress, is it sustainable? A frequent response to positive news related to health, prosperity and well-being is the belief that such a situation is unsustainable. While, in an exorbitant way, the proliferation spreads around the world, the Earth's natural resources are voraciously consumed, showing indifference in relation to its limitations, contaminating the entire surroundings with pollution and waste, accelerating the arrival of a moment of accountability with the environment. Undoubtedly, it is not presumed that the mere conception of environmental problems is a self-evident truth. From the individual perspective, the Earth presents itself as something infinite, and humanity's effects on it seem devoid of relevance. Looking at the planet from a scientific perspective, a disturbing reality is revealed. Microscopic scrutiny exposes the presence of pollutants that surreptitiously poison not only the human species, but also those we revere and on whom we are interdependent. On the other hand, the macroscopic analysis reveals the harmful effects on the ecosystem, whose repercussions, although they may seem imperceptible in the face of each isolated action, add up to a looting tragedy. If overpopulation, resource depletion, and pollution cannot decimate humanity, climate change certainly will. From farm to table, it is necessary to establish a confluence between Human Rights and food safety in agribusiness, in order to overcome the great challenge: Is it possible to solve pains and reduce costs to increase production and benefit the environment, honoring the inter-American regulatory standards, of to converge interests between Human Rights and Business? This work, therefore, as a preliminary essay to the auspicious scientific article that is approaching, aiming, even if superficially, to answer the research problem, focused on a qualitative study, of a descriptive nature, with the accomplishment of a bibliographical research, adopting as a theoretical reference, the Business and Human Rights Report, presented by Soledad García Muñoz to the IACHR.