Risky Business is an impressive production that deals with agricultural biotechnology and the controversial issue of genetic engineering. In a sentence, genetic engineering involves transferring the DNA of one animal, plant, or microbial species into another to achieve certain desired properties such as resistance to a specific disease. This can be an extremely difficult subject to understand, especially if it is complicated by technical language. However, this presentation has made it very straightforward, avoiding a lot of the biochemical jargon without sacrificing scientific accuracy, and focusing on the effects and consequences of such practices.

No fewer than 10 Ph.D.-level researchers, university faculty in the field, environmental activists of national and international prominence, crop and dairy farmers, and state legislators, along with the CEO of Calgene, provide their insights. Their comments and positions are designed to stimulate public consciousness of and discussion on such questions as, What are the benefits of such transgenic plants and animals, and to whom do they accrue? What are the risks to the environment? Is this the kind of future society wants? These questions serve as a natural bridge to a discussion of the underlying business incentives. This not-so-subtle connection is perhaps the single most compelling reason to watch this video

Bovine growth hormone (BGH, also known as bovine somatotropin or BST) is synthesized and produced by Monsanto Chemical Corporation. It is sold to dairy farmers, who can inject it into their cows to increase milk production. This increase in the volume of milk obtained from the same number of cows naturally increases the farm's profitability. But it can also create an oversupply of milk and depress the market unit price - and with it the profit the farmer was hoping to realize. Moreover, BGH has been linked to cancer, and some of it inevitably shows up in the cow's milk, lowering its quality. Long-term consequences of exposure to this kind of milk are unknown, but the prospect of young children whose immune systems are not yet fully developed drinking milk from BGH-treated cows on a daily basis for over a decade raises serious questions. When the state of Vermont, the home of many dairy farmers, tried to pass legislation mandating the labeling of milk containers to inform the public whether or not the milk contains BGH, Monsanto vigorously fought to prevent it.

The CEO of Calgene, a bioagricultural company located in California, states that the market for tomato seeds is $20 million annually, while the market for the tomato fruit is $3.5 billion. This is the reason, he claims, that Calgene entered the market and produced the first genetically engineered tomato. Calgene has its eyes next set on the cotton crop. But while genetically engineered cotton may be more disease resistant, it may also require and tolerate higher doses of herbicide, the use of which is environmentally unsound and contrary to the original intent of reducing dependence on pesticides and the amounts of them released into the environment.

It is wisely noted that transgenic plants can grow, breed, and multiply in the natural environment. Yet no one can predict the consequences of this. Scientists have already successfully transferred tobacco genes into lettuce, flounder genes into tomatoes, and chicken genes into potatoes.

European countries have more stringent health requirements and regulations than the USA has for BGH and pesticide use. The European Parliament has banned patents on bioengineered products. Brazil, Argentina, and India don't allow patents on genetically engineered crops and animals. Where does this leave the USA, and what does it portend?