Monsanto Seed Giant

29 April 2005
Corporate seed experts discover heirlooms off the beaten path...

On March 23th 2005, Seminis the largest vegetable and fruit seed breeder in the world became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Monsanto. The acquisition makes Monsanto the largest seed and, incidentally, biotech company in the world. It heralds the corporation's expansion from large-scale GM agricultural crops, such as Roundup Ready (herbicide tolerant) and Bt (insect resistant) soybeans, corns, potatoes, cottons, canolas (oil seed rapes) and sugar beets, into the vegetable and fruit seed market.

Lori Fisher, spokeswoman for Monsanto, said, "Seminis was an attractive acquisition because it was already a market leader and could contribute quickly to Monsanto's financial success." Most of the lettuce, cucumber and tomato seeds at the present contains Seminis genes. Mexican billionaire, Alfonso Romo Garza, who is the founder and CEO of Seminis and son of a Mexican president,, was quoted as saying, "Seeds are software and we have the seeds."

Heirlooms are targetted for patenting

One of Seed Savers concerns is that heirlooms and traditional varieties, currently held by indigenous farmers and their communities as well as seed saving organizations around the world, are at risk of having their genes patented. Currently there is little to prevent Seminis from laying their hands on heirloom seeds and subsequently putting the Monsanto/Seminis "new improved" heirloom seeds on the market.

A Seminis website article confirms our concerns: "each year Seminis Garden experts search the globe to discover the latest breakthroughs in vegetables and fruits - from top performing hybrids developed by our worldwide research network to unique heirloom varieties discovered in parts off the beaten path" (http://www.seminisgarden.com/)

Could "the beaten path" leads to subsistance gardens by any chance?

Seminis already has a track record on GM vegetable seeds

Ostensibly, Monsanto's stated purpose is to speed up the development of new vegetable varieties by giving Seminis access to technologies such as molecular markers, which help plant breeders track desirable traits. To date, Seminis has focused on developing new commercial varieties, e.g., the baby carrot, a miniature watermelon and a lettuce in the shape of a taco shell. As at mid 2004, however, Seminis also had over 80 GM patents and is seeking more on beans, broccoli, cabbage capsicum, cauliflower, celery, corn, cucumber, eggplant, endive, leek, lettuce, melon, onion, peas, pumpkin, radish, spinach, squash, tomato, watermelon. They also have a Roundup herbicide resistant GM cherry on trial in Holland and the USA.

Monsanto itself has GM wheat, rice, sugar cane and fruit trees ready and waiting for a country to approve them as commercial crops. Through licensing arrangements, Monsanto already hires out genes and technology traits that will extend its sphere of influence.

Garden-based resistance

Here at Seed Savers we will continue to advocate the production and free exchange of locally adapted seed for local and regional food production. Thank you to those who continue to support our work by saving seeds at home and multiplying rare seed varieties; those who have initiated a Local Seed Network; those who help us at our HQ in Byron Bay, Australia, to maintain our computers, website, botanical library, seed database and seed gardens; those who adapt our Seed Savers' Handbook into yet more languages and those who are helping with finances.

Sources

"Monsanto Buying Leader in Fruit and Vegetable Seeds", The New York Times, Jan 25, 2005.

"Monsanto Co. to Pay $1billion for Produce-Seed Firm Seminis", The Wall Street Journal, Jan 25, 2005

Addendum

Monsanto's leading manufacturing achievements include:

· 1920s Sulphuric Acid

· 1939-45 research leading to production of first nuclear bomb for the Manhattan Project

· 1950 synthetic fibres with American Viscose company

· 1957 plastic bottle technology

· 1960 Dioxine Agent Orange DDT, 24D and 245T

· 1962 synthetic carpet fibres

· PCB chemicals

· Roundup herbicide

· Bovine Growth Hormones injected into cows to increase milk production

· The artificial sweetener, Aspartame, Equal that has terrible side effects for health for some people