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Monsanto Seed Business Role Revealed in the US Mainstream Media. Any Thoughts?

I saw this article yesterday on Monsanto and wondered what everyone thought of the issues.

Joe

AP INVESTIGATION: Monsanto seed biz role revealed
By CHRISTOPHER LEONARD (AP) – 1 day ago

ST. LOUIS — Confidential contracts detailing Monsanto Co.'s business practices reveal how the world's biggest seed developer is squeezing competitors, controlling smaller seed companies and protecting its dominance over the multibillion-dollar market for genetically altered crops, an Associated Press investigation has found.

With Monsanto's patented genes being inserted into roughly 95 percent of all soybeans and 80 percent of all corn grown in the U.S., the company also is using its wide reach to control the ability of new biotech firms to get wide distribution for their products, according to a review of several Monsanto licensing agreements and dozens of interviews with seed industry participants, agriculture and legal experts.

Declining competition in the seed business could lead to price hikes that ripple out to every family's dinner table. That's because the corn flakes you had for breakfast, soda you drank at lunch and beef stew you ate for dinner likely were produced from crops grown with Monsanto's patented genes.

Monsanto's methods are spelled out in a series of confidential commercial licensing agreements obtained by the AP. The contracts, as long as 30 pages, include basic terms for the selling of engineered crops resistant to Monsanto's Roundup herbicide, along with shorter supplementary agreements that address new Monsanto traits or other contract amendments.

The company has used the agreements to spread its technology — giving some 200 smaller companies the right to insert Monsanto's genes in their separate strains of corn and soybean plants. But, the AP found, access to Monsanto's genes comes at a cost, and with plenty of strings attached.

For example, one contract provision bans independent companies from breeding plants that contain both Monsanto's genes and the genes of any of its competitors, unless Monsanto gives prior written permission — giving Monsanto the ability to effectively lock out competitors from inserting their patented traits into the vast share of U.S. crops that already contain Monsanto's genes.

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Permalink Reply by AgOntario on January 5, 2010 at 1:35am
Forbes names Monsanto Company of the Year

Read the article at http://ca.mg202.mail.yahoo.com/dc/launch?.partner=rogers-acs&.g...

The Planet Versus Monsanto
Robert Langreth and Matthew Herper, 12.31.09, 04:40 PM EST
Forbes Magazine dated January 18, 2010
Monsanto's first round of attackers said its seeds were evil. Now the charge is that Monsanto's seeds are too good.
Permalink Reply by Roadrunner on January 9, 2010 at 3:04am
Not a big fan of Monsanto but the research they are doing has really helped push up our corn yields....
Permalink Reply by Bristow on January 9, 2010 at 2:43pm
They do what any well respected multi national company does they sue you. Court injunkions not allowing you to plant your seed, until you go bankrupt, and can't afford to take legal action. They are now moving in on the Animal trade with pigs. Some of their gm food for pigs are making pigs infertile in the US. I watched a docrementary on the company and their practices very evil what I saw.

Pat stocking said:
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?
Permalink Reply by Bristow on January 9, 2010 at 2:48pm
They own you now. See what happens when you change brands, they can come on your property to see if you have any residual traces of their genes in your crop.

Roadrunner said:
Not a big fan of Monsanto but the research they are doing has really helped push up our corn yields....

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