Tech | April 08, 2010 | 27 comments

Stop the “Monsantosizing” of Food, Seeds and Animals!

source: http://www.navdanya.org/news/86-global-statement-stop-the-monsantosizing-of-food-seeds-and-a...

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JanforGore
As of today truly global action is being taken against patents on seed, plants, farm animals, parts thereof including gene sequences and food. Over 100 organisations from all parts of the world are alerting the public and warning of the dangers of increasing monopoly rights on basic resources of farm and food production. Seed, plants and farm animals as well as food production chains are becoming progressively subject to monopoly rights imposed by worldwide patents. More and more patents have been filed and now include claims covering the conventional breeding of plants and animals. They are actually being claimed by industry as their inventions!

If this trend is not stopped these developments will impact on farmers, smaller-scale breeders, food producers and consumers. Leaving the control over seeds to multinational corporations means leaving decisions on choice in the food market and the way food is produced to those whose first aim is to make a profit, not provide food security. Farmers in particular are increasingly dependent on agrochemical and seed corporations. Breeding is becoming more difficult as access to genetic resources is hampered by the restrictions that patents impose. This situation will result in fewer innovations urgently needed for food safety.

The US company Monsanto recently filed patent application WO2008021413, which – in more than 1000 pages - makes 175 claims to misappropriate various gene sequences and genetic variations, especially in soy and maize. Monsanto even goes as far as to explicitly claim all relevant maize and soy plants inheriting those genetic elements and its uses in food, feed and biomass. In a further patent application, WO 2009011847, Monsanto makes broad claims covering methods for cattle breeding, for the animals themselves as well as “milk, cheese, butter and meat”. These patents and many others filed by various companies such as Dupont and Syngenta are the reason why Navdanya is calling upon politicians and patent offices around the world to ensure that such patents cannot and will not be granted:

“A radical change both in patent legislation and the practice of patent offices is needed to eliminate patents on plants and farm animals. Corporations should not be allowed to continue misappropriation and monopolisation of seeds, plants and farm animals via patent law. Otherwise these patents will become a major threat to global food security and regional food sovereignty.”

Navdanya is calling upon organisations and individuals to sign the joint global alert posted on the website of the ‘no patents on seeds' coalition. Global days of action against patents on farm and food production are planned from the end of April until July 2010. They will end in a public hearing on 20 July at the European Patent Office in Munich, Germany. This hearing will be on e on a patent filed for the conventional breeding of broccoli which hat will lead to a precedent decision being made in Europe. Navdanya will inform the public about these activities and will support it.
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27 comments // Stop the “Monsantosizing” of Food, Seeds and Animals!

  • dalistuff
    • 0
      dalistuff  

    • Can't wait to eat that grain of rice that's been cross bred with a hyena and a finch with a touch o' dung beetle. Hmmmmmm. Watch "Yes men fix the world".

    • 2 years ago
  • redmancometh
  • dariusvons
    • 0
      dariusvons  

    • Monsanto is the devil. and like the saying does, it's better to be the right hand of the devil than be in his path"... I'm actually working on my degree in molecular genetics. I can do just what these guys are doing but in reverse... using insects, pathogens, parasites and weed plants, making them resistant/immune to Monsanto herbicides and pesticides, and so they ONLY attack kill eat and actually flourish on Monsanto crops so that wild strains are a better option by default.

    • 2 years ago
  • redmancometh
  • CaptB
    • 0
      CaptB  

    • This is one of the main reasons I was against the G-8. The globalization of the world and these 8 countries are using genetically altered rice (staple for many countries) to undermine poor nations. The G-8 does many more things that are hurting the world and impacting it in a negative way.

      I fear that the patents are one way to thwart many countries and their free markets, as well as the farmers. The commerce is coming under control of these huge corporations.

      JanforGore is right, petitions and being politically active are the best way. Boycotting is difficult, since we eat and support so many of these companies.

    • 2 years ago
  • JanforGore
    • 0
      JanforGore  
    • Image
    • CaptB:

      Yes, boycotting on a massive scale is hard, but last year sales of RoundUp went down and more farmers are tunring to planting non GM soy and speaking out. Knowledge is power and an important tool in sparking even some boycotting that can bring about change. I have my reservations about the G-8 as well because they do the bidding for organizations like the World Bank, WTO, and IMF, and GE seeds are a big way to subjugate the poor to their will. There are natural seeds like the moringa oleifera that can purify water, cure illness, as well as provide food sufficiency to these countries. We don't need GMOs in our food on any level. But with patents becoming so prevalent in regards to our food and the collusion between governments and companies like Monsanto, I even wonder if something as miraculous as the moringa oleifera would be safe for long.

      http://current.com/news/92348727_worlds-most-useful-tree-provides-low-cost-water...

    • 2 years ago
  • captainplanet71
  • JanforGore
    • +1
      JanforGore  

    • Yes we do. We need to keep this in the spotlight, sign petitions, send letters, and most importantly BOYCOTT these companies and their products! Hit them where it hurts the most, in their profit sheets. Farmers also now have a choice with this information and they should get off the Monsanto merry go round and go back to planting seeds they can save! Study after study has shown that sustainable agriculture is the answer to so many problems plaguing this society from economy to environment. This destructive industrial model that keeps us enslaved to fossil fuels, nitrogen fertilizers and pesticides is a recipe for disaster. It is simply insane to clear whole forests to grow monoculture soy or corn to put in gas tanks and animals and claim that is sustainable! It is also against all tenets of personal freedom to allow patents on seeds, genes, animals and life itself! This is indeed the most insidious form of slavery and needs to be stopped globally. I hope more people see the link here for the peitition to speak out against these patents and sign it. Those who own the food own us.

    • 2 years ago
  • Johnll
    • +1
      Johnll  

    • We need to keep at this so that the fed's know that we mean business about, not using pesticides or GM Seeds in the gene of life( those that don't care let 'em use)

    • 2 years ago
  • Xenzaka
    • +1
      Xenzaka  

    • VOTE UP REAL NEWS THAT IMPACTS HUMANITY! NOT ENTERTAINMENT NEWS! NO ONE CARES ABOUT THE PRICE TO MANUFACTURE A FUCKING "iPAD"

      LETS WORRY ABOUT LIFE

      LIFE

      VOTE UP

    • 2 years ago
  • Xenzaka
  • unclepete813
    • +2
      unclepete813  

    • burn that company down. I been saying this for 10years thats a reptilian run company for the NWO to kill off 80% of the population. Thats pure evil company. I wish a comet comes and destroys the headquarters of that company and tornados knock down all the plants and fields. yeah I said it thats pure evil that is the devils food mart. dont eat anything from that company and walmart. they part of the NWO and the ELITES>

    • 2 years ago
  • Darevalo
    • 0
      Darevalo  

    • im not fully against gmo food... but i am against the way monsanto does gmo and uses patents... i hope they get what they deserve for their greed and deceit

    • 2 years ago
  • TasteHi
    • +1
      TasteHi  

    • Is the U.S. the only country that's legally against the monopolization of any industry/market? I've never looked into the laws for monopolizing through patent in other countries.

      Perhaps it would be best if corporations could only hold a limited # of patents at any one time. Also once the patent expires the patent should be open to bidding by all competitors with a wait period of 1 year before patent can be owned again.Obviously the original company can not bid for the patent nor can any other organization or entity outside of the original patent holder bid on behalf of said original patent holder. Patents are also non-transferable in this scenario.

      Seriously though Monsanto has the law in its pocket.....Do these people not realize that Monsanto single handedly supports......never mind they'll just employ, replace, re employ and dis employ and keep moving all their little pawns around till the scales tip their way again.

    • 2 years ago
  • MidnightHorrors
  • jeffreyak
  • MidnightHorrors
  • CalgarC
    • +2
      CalgarC  

    • like i said before... monsanto will not survive the decade... our interwebs took down the RIAA and we will take down Monsanto.

      Monsanto might be the galactic empire but we gotz teh skywalker(internet)!

    • 2 years ago
  • TasteHi
    • -1
      TasteHi  
    • CalgarC:

      uhm if Monsanto so chose they could undo the intra web....i won't say how just for paranoia's sake but it's very easy and very possible and they have the lobbyists to do it. Plus RIAA is still live n well last I heard...

    • 2 years ago
  • CalgarC
    • 0
      CalgarC  
    • TasteHi:

      no one can defy the power of OpenSource. you can't just shut down our interwebs lol. the minute one site goes down 5 new ones go up... plus when the RIAA got thepiratebay disabled, you can still download from thepiratebay site rofl. we will destroy monsanto.

    • 2 years ago
  • Progresshiv
  • Kurta
    • +1
      Kurta  

    • I wont even get started on this. I'm too tired and mad now. I'll just say after years of fighting this patent bullshit with lab animals, there's little chance for the lowly soybean.

    • 2 years ago
  • bailey78
  • JanforGore
    • +6
      JanforGore  

    • Part 1 of 5 about Monsanto's patent for a pig. Imagine the implications of this worldwide if it were allowed to happen. We might as well then stamp MONSANTO OWNED on our foreheads.

    • 2 years ago
  • JanforGore
  • itoldyouso
  • itoldyouso
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