“Corny” editorial
Occasionally when my personal schedule permits it, I like to treat myself to the New York Times newspaper. Among my favourite sections to read is the famous, “New York Times Editorial” which is often quoted for its enlightened perspective on not only local issues but world events. One of last Saturday’s editorials called “Corn-Phone” caught my attention.
It’s been reported that Samsung has announced it will begin selling a new line of “eco-phones” which will contain 40 to 50 per cent bio-plastic made in part from corn. This is great news I thought to myself, however the editorial went on to basically slam this new corn-phone. One of the main reasons for the negative editorial is that it diverts corn from food production and helping to drive up food prices. This argument is getting pretty tired in my book. There are many factors involved in driving up food prices around the world with sky-rocketing price of oil being the main culprit, not corn.
To criticize Samsung for being creative and trying to incorporate renewable crops in its products of is off the mark. Not only does it create a value added benefit for corn producers, we all benefit because it helps our environment, albeit in a small way. Is it a perfect process and will it solve all of our environmental problems, of course not. Samsung however should be applauded for its innovative thinking and the development of these eco-friendlier “corn-phones.” As research continues to evolve I am sure we will see more corn or even soybean content added to the cell phone and certainly other electronic devices that Samsung manufactures, with other companies surely to follow their lead.
The future is not with fossil fuels but rather renewable energy from wind, wave, solar technology and row crops such as corn and soybeans. The New York Times should recognize and support efforts from companies such as Samsung to eliminate our dependency on oil based content in their products. Their simplistic negative editorial view about the corn content in cell phones and driving up food costs is badly misplaced.
