Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

Can someone please explain to me how Monsanto corp. are able to sue farmers that have planted non Monsanto seed brands that have been pollinated by a neighbors round up ready Monsanto bean, the pollen carries the gene that shows in the bean. why can't the farmer sue Monsanto for contaminating his crop?

Views: 113

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Because Monsanto has billions of dollars for lawyers and the farmer doesn't. Might makes right, don'tcha know?
maybe the following story will help........can we "monopoly"?......the farmers never had a chance.

AP IMPACT: Secret documents detail Monsanto's seed business domination amid antitrust fears

the complete article can be found at:
http://beginningfarmers.org/ap-report-secret-documents-detail-monsa...

"Monsanto’s business strategies and licensing agreements are beinginvestigated by the U.S. Department of Justice and at least two state attorneys general, who are trying to determine if the practices violate U.S. antitrust laws. The practices also are at the heart of civil antitrust suits filed against Monsanto by its competitors, including a 2004 suit filed by Syngenta AG that was settled with an agreement and ongoing litigation filed this summer by DuPont in response to a Monsanto lawsuit."....

"We now believe that Monsanto has control over as much as 90 percent of (seed genetics). This level of control is almost unbelievable," said Neil Harl, agricultural economist at Iowa State University who has studied the seed industry for decades. "The upshot of that is that it's tightening Monsanto's control, and makes it possible for them to increase their prices long term. And we've seen this happening the last five years, and the end is not in sight."
Good article in the Economist on Monsanto - relatively balanced. Here are the first couple of lines - click on the link to find the whole article... Joe

The Parable of the Sower
from the ECONOMIST Print Magazine

FEW companies excite such extreme emotions as Monsanto. To its critics, the agricultural giant is a corporate hybrid of Victor Frankenstein and Ebenezer Scrooge, using science to create foods that threaten the health of both people and the planet, and intellectual-property laws to squeeze every last penny out of the world’s poor. The list of Monsanto’s sins dates back to when (with other firms) it produced Agent Orange, a herbicide notorious for its use by American forces in Vietnam. Recently “Food Inc”, a documentary film, lambasted the company.

To its admirers, the innovations in seeds pioneered by Monsanto are the world’s best hope of tackling a looming global food crisis. Hugh Grant, the firm’s boss since 2003, says that without the sort of technological breakthroughs Monsanto has achieved the world has no chance of doubling agricultural output by 2050 while using less land and water, as many believe it must. Mr Grant, of course, would say that. But he is not alone. Bill Gates sees Monsanto’s innovations as essential to the agricultural revolution in Africa to which his charitable foundation is committed. Josette Sheeran, the head of the United Nations World Food Programme, is also a fan.


http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14904184
nobody tried it yet, that is my understanding
there is a time coming that all the roundup ready crops are weeds
look at it round up ready soya in a roundup ready whet field followed by roundup ready corn

Reply to Discussion

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

U.K. detects first human case of 'distinct' form of swine flu

Officials are racing to track the contacts of the United Kingdom's first human case of a "distinct" form of swine flu. On Monday, the U.K. Health Security Agency (UKHSA) announced it had detected a single confirmed human case of influenza A(H1N2)v as part of routine national flu surveillance. There have been dozens of human cases of that strain reported globally since 2005, but none of them are genetically related to the recently identified case, officials said. "Based on early information, the infection detected in the U.K. is a distinct clade (1b.1.1), which is different from recent human cases of influenza A(H1N2) elsewhere in the world but is similar to viruses in U.K. swine," reads the UKHSA's statement. Officials said the individual experienced a mild illness and fully recovered, but the source of their infection isn't yet known. "We are working rapidly to trace close contacts and reduce any potential spread," Meera Chand, the UKHSA's incident director, said in a statement. "

Secretary Naig Announces New Water Quality Partnership Project with Iowa Pork and INREC

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig announced today that the Iowa Pork Producers Association (IPPA) and the Iowa Nutrient Research and Education Council (INREC) will partner with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship on a “batch and build” water quality project in targeted Iowa watersheds. The first phase of the Pig Farmer Water Quality Partnership Program, which is in place through June 30, 2026, will initially focus within the priority watersheds of the Boone River and North Raccoon River. As the project grows, the goal will be for the project to expand into other targeted watersheds. By working with pork producers and other farmers and landowners who utilize manure as fertilizer, the plan is to install edge-of-field practices such as bioreactors and saturated buffers using Iowa’s innovative “batch and build” model. The model modernizes the project management process by installing batches of conservation practices on multiple farms at once, therefore allowing

New Legislation Could Protect Livestock Producers, Tackle Rising Costs

Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley introduced the Protecting Interstate Commerce for Livestock Producers Act to protect farmers from costly regulations – made in other states – that will hurt their business and drive-up costs for consumers. “Missouri’s livestock producers keep food on the table across America and they shouldn’t be burdened by costly laws – made by other states – that disrupt interstate commerce, drive-up costs, and impose crippling regulations,” Sen. Hawley said in a release. “This law is a commonsense solution to protect family farms from going bankrupt and consumers from shouldering higher costs at the grocery store.” California voters passed Proposition 12 that bans the sale of pork, eggs and calves for veal that were not produced with certain space requirements. It is estimated that California accounts for 13% of all pork consumption in the U.S., Hawley's office said in a release. Hawley doesn't believe that farmers across the country should have to comply with California

Iowa Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Pork Producers

A Rock Rapids, Iowa, man has pleaded guilty in federal court to manipulating weights of hogs in order to defraud pork producers. According to the Sioux City Journal, Robert Bickerstaff, 52, entered his plea on Dec. 1 in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids to one count of wire fraud. He could face up to 20 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000 and 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment. A sentencing date is yet to be set. During the plea hearing, the U.S. Attorney’s office said Bickerstaff admitted he had worked as a regional manger for an Iowa livestock dealer between 2018 and 2021. As regional manager, he oversaw livestock buying stations in Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota. He also personally counted, classified and weighed swine at these stations, reports KIWA Radio. Bickerstaff personally lowered the weights, numbers and classifications of hogs producers delivered to the dealer's buying stations, or directed others to fraudulently to do, said the U.S. At

Ag in the House: Nov. 27 – Dec. 1

Conservatives pressured the government about Bill C-234 all week

© 2023   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service