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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Homeless feeding questioned Disc golf course coming to Cave Junction park Human remains found in burning trailer Fear of orphaned cubs nixes new spring bear hunt Cecil, Stricker to face off again in mayor's race Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Fallen White City firefighter to be honored at national service Barn fire may have been human-caused Emergency services Inmates to get mental health, addiction treatment Missing Medford man found safe in Sweet Home Politics and Elections Cecil, Stricker to face off again in mayor's race Commissioner candidates Talbert, Roberts duel for endorsements Falls: Jackson County sheriff's race isn't over Former sheriff calls Winters' retirement decision 'very wise' Will 'GMO effect' shape election? 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Medford airport has busiest September ever County hopes to spur renewable energy Real Estate News Lithia buys Clovis dealership Rental vacancies increase Jackson County real estate sales, prices continue rebound Pallet Wine Co. expands in downtown Medford Medford's Pixel Productions moves to new quarters People In Business Transportation Lithia buys Clovis dealership Agriculture Ranchers offer livestock exchange 1-800-Flowers CEO: Labor shortage an issue for Harry & David Pallet Wine Co. expands in downtown Medford Opinion Latest Election Letters, Oct.11 Another View: Congress must act on firefighting budget Letters to the Editor, Oct. 10 Matthew T. 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Fear of orphaned cubs nixes new spring bear hunt ... Fallen White City firefighter to be honored at national service ... Human remains found in burning trailer ... Fear of orphaned cubs nixes new spring bear hunt ... Fallen White City firefighter to be honored at national service ... Initiative would ban GMO foods in Jackson County Proponents will present petition that could lead to ballot measure Ashland seed farmer Chuck Burr said he has a personal reason to support a proposed ban on genetically modified organisms in Jackson County. By JOHN DARLING MailTribune.com By JOHN DARLING Posted Jan. 2, 2013 @ 12:01 am Updated Jan 2, 2013 at 2:45 AM By JOHN DARLING Posted Jan. 2, 2013 @ 12:01 am Updated Jan 2, 2013 at 2:45 AM » RELATED CONTENT • Measure to ban GMOs in Jackson County qualifies for May 2... • GMO ban supporters flock to Jackson County offices » Social News Ashland seed farmer Chuck Burr said he has a personal reason to support a proposed ban on genetically modified organisms in Jackson County. He had to throw away $4,700 in chard seed after learning it might have been contaminated with pollen from nearby GMO fields. "I'm up against it here," said Burr, the owner of the 10-acre Restoration Farm on Old Siskiyou Highway. "I have to make a living, and I have an absolutely constitutional right to engage in commerce. "And if another company comes in from outside the area and prevents me from doing it, then my rights trump theirs." Burr vigorously supports the campaign of GMO-Free Jackson County, which today plans to file 6,700 signatures with the elections office in the hopes of placing a ballot measure that would ban genetically modified crops on the May 2014 primary ballot. Petitioners Brian Comnes and Chris Hardy, both of Ashland, said only 4,462 signatures are required, but if too many are ruled invalid, they'll have a year to gather more names. Comnes said backers plan to address the Jackson County Board of Commissioners at its regular meeting today, then hold a rally on the courthouse steps and march to the elections office several blocks away to file the signatures. The county charter requires ballot measures to be on a primary, general or special election ballot. Commissioners could call for a special election in May, but aren't likely to because of the expense. The last special election cost the county $34,000, County Clerk Chris Walker said. The proposed law has urgency for both health and economic reasons, Comnes said. Several organic farmers in recent months found genetically modified sugar beets, planted by Syngenta AG, a multinational Swiss corporation, within four miles of their farms. The U.S. Department of Agriculture had required a four-mile buffer from GMO crops to maintain an organic rating, he said, but the rule was widely ignored and the USDA suspended it earlier this year. Still, half a dozen organic farms — in Gold Hill, Medford, Talent and Ashland — whose crops had been contaminated had to throw away seed or plow under crops so they wouldn't inadvertently plant genetically modified produce, he said. Organic farmer Glenda Ponder of Abbie Lane Farm near the Rogue River said a farmer an eighth of a mile away is growing sugar beet seed for Syngenta. "It ties our hands for saving our chard seed and planting or selling it as organic," she said. "Selling organic seed is a good way to make money, but we can't do it." She saves seeds from all other crops for replanting, but not chard, which is in the same family as sugar beets and accepts beet pollen. "Crops need an isolation distance," said Burr, who grows more than 300 varieties of "true to type" seeds for the seed market and is inspected annually by Oregon Tilth for organic certification. GMO corporations, he adds, should be limited to planting in wide open regions, such as the Great Plains, not in narrow valleys such as the Rogue Valley. Rep. Peter Buckley, D-Ashland, said the Legislature will study such an isolation zone statewide in its upcoming session. John Darling is a freelance writer living in Ashland. Email him at [email protected]. By JOHN DARLING MailTribune.com By JOHN DARLING Posted Jan. 2, 2013 @ 12:01 am Updated Jan 2, 2013 at 2:45 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2014 Local Media Group, Inc. 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