Monsanto Ordered to Pay Man $289 Million

It's a huge win over weedkiller-giant Monsanto, the maker of Roundup, the most popular weedkiller in the world! Jurors in San Francisco just awarded a former school groundskeeper
Dwayne Johnson $289 million after he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Coming Soon!

"The Case Against GMOs"

TakePart.com did a little fact-checking on some of the claims surrounding the controversy of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and Monsanto.

Some takeaway points:

• ...genetically altering corn “causes unintended changes in the way it grows, causing it to be less productive.”
•  “Rats fed on a diet containing NK603—a seed variety made tolerant to dousings of Monsanto's Roundup weedkiller—or given water with Roundup at levels permitted in the United States, died earlier than those on a standard diet"
• Round-Up Ready crops were supposed to reduce the use of herbicides, but "13 years later, evolution has run its course and now superbugs and superweeds plague farmers. As a result, herbicide use increased by 11 percent between 1996 and 2011."
• Advice to organic farmers who have to worry about GMO genes making its way into their crops? "In a new USDA report, the government suggests that such farmers buy additional insurance to protect them from crops lost due to unintentional GMO contamination."

Check it out here!

Monsanto Comic

The arms of Monsanto spread far and wide, and weave a more complex web than most understand...

In short, Midwestern agriculture quickly evolved into a vast, efficient system that is much easier to farm but is "biologically simple," said Doug Gurian-Sherman, a senior scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists, and a specialist on biotech agriculture.

"But the problem is,'' he added, "it's a perfect storm for resistance."

A new article from the Star Tribune about the perfect ecological storm that is being created by Monsanto.

8 Reasons Not to Trust Monsanto with Our Food

I'm having a little difficulty properly formatting the image. So just click on the image to view it completely.

From Care2

France finds Monsanto "Guilty" of poisoning farmer

I love when Monsanto "gets what's coming to them", but it doesn't happen nearly enough.

Farmers Sue USDA Over Monsanto

And Monsanto is in the news once again...

Other countries protect their people against GM crops

Other countries across Europe are acting to protect their people and environments against GM crops, but sadly not the US.

Monsanto in the news

Jeez, I've been coming across a ton of stories regarding Monsanto lately.

Today I read this article about Monsanto Alfalfa being USDA approved just weeks after a senior soil scientist alerted them to a pathogen found in the soil of Round Up Ready corn and soy that they think could be linked to infertility in livestock and disease in crops.

"For the past 40 years, I have been a scientist in the professional and military agencies that evaluate and prepare for natural and manmade biological threats, including germ warfare and disease outbreaks," Huber wrote in his January 16 letter to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. "Based on this experience, I believe the threat we are facing from this pathogen is unique and of a high risk status. In layman's terms, it should be treated as an emergency."

Read the article here.

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This article is from 2008, but I have read similar things in 2010, so the issue continues.

So Shankara became one of an estimated 125,000 farmers to take their own life as a result of the ruthless drive to use India as a testing ground for genetically modified crops.

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And this article addresses "Why Monsanto Always Wins".

Back in 2003, USDA officials were concerned about "deficiencies" in Monsanto's original petition to deregulate the GE alfalfa seeds, so they drafted a letter with about 90 questions for Monsanto. In several emails, officials working with the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) asked Monsanto officials to comment and "suggest improvements" on at least three drafts of the "deficiency letter." Monsanto was happy to redraft the letter point by point.

 and

The increased reliance on glyphosate-based herbicides like Roundup has caused weeds to develop their own tolerance to the chemical. Herbicide-resistant weeds, sometimes called "superweeds," now infest millions of acres of cropland. Farmers now combat the weeds with cocktails of herbicides like 2,4 D - an ingredient in Agent Orange - that are know to be more toxic than glyphosate. In all, farmers have used at least 318 million more pounds of herbicides and pesticides in the past 13 years as a result of planting GE crop seeds like Roundup Ready corn and soy.

Check it out!

Monsanto may be connected to birth defects

And yet another article on the dirty deeds of Monsanto. This one outlines a possible connection between Monsanto crops and birth defects in chickens. I know I've been seeing more stories coming out of other countries regarding chicks born with extra sets of legs and such. There may be a connection to Monsanto.

GMO crops have escaped into the wild...

I've griped about Monsanto for years, their seed-patenting, toxic Round-Up products, and GMO crops. Now genetically engineered canola is popping up in the wild, and may become an uncontrollable weed, since they are herbicide resistant. Read the story here.

Down with Monsanto

I've written in the past about Monsanto, their unethical and heavy-handed business practices, and the negative impact they are having on agriculture. I found another article today regarding them, this time on the Survivalist Seeds website. I tracked it down to an article written by P.J. Huffstutter of the LA Times. Read it here, and be aware.

Have You Seen This?

Have you seen the movie Food, Inc.? Everyone should watch this movie! Amazing! You would not believe the corruption that fills our food industry. They have government in their pocket just the same as big tobacco. This movie made me madder and more determined than any movie within the last few years, and it reaffirmed once more why I dislike Monsanto so much.

If you have Netflix, please be sure to put this one on your list. Or just go to their official website to watch it...

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change? - Trailer and Photos

The World According to Monsanto

For anyone who is already familiar with the workings of Monsanto, or for those who are interested in learning how Monsanto is threatening our global food supply, check out these videos on Twilight Earth. No need for me to say anything further. These videos speak for themselves.

A Seedless Future?

Am I the only person getting concerned with the possibility of our government controlling our food supply to the point of not allowing people to grow their own food, or licensing whether food is grown or not?

I've written on here about Monsanto and how they have patented seeds, so you cannot save seeds from produce grown from their patented seeds. So you have to basically "license" to use their seeds.

Last night my boyfriend went to the grocery store, and got some produce. First I learned of his seedless oranges that he'd bought, and there are seedless watermelons and grapes. Now last night he cut open a green pepper to find that it was seedless.

I understand that this started for reasons of convenience. It is so much nicer to eat a piece of watermelon and not have to spit out a ton of seeds in the process.

But is anyone else concerned of the potential abuses? Seeds patented, licensed and controlled. The inability to grow produce that contain seeds. The threat of having to continually pay for more seeds to continue growing produce? The threat to our right to just "grow". To lose our right to trade seeds, save seeds, to grow heirloom vegetables.

I'm really not a conspiracy theorist. Honest! I'm usually trying to be the "voice of reason" with my friends who ARE conspiracy theorists. But I'm just saying...

Is anyone else concerned?

Trying to avoid Monsanto seeds? Good luck...

I was checking out Freedom Gardens network, and came across a discussion about Monsanto, which I posted about earlier. They have found that there are a LOT of Monsanto seeds out there being sold under names you are familiar with, like Cook's, Burpee and Spring Hill's.

If you are avoiding Monsanto seeds, you may want to stick with purchasing seeds through Seed Saver's, Seed's of Change or other seed-saving networks.

The Far-Reaching Arms of Monsanto

You may not be familiar with the name, as I was not, but I'm sure you are familiar with some of their products. Most familiar is their weedkiller Roundup. They also have developed seeds that sprout plants that are unaffected by Roundup, so that farmers can use the product on their crops.

Vanity Fair has done a great article on this company, and their heavy-handed and bullying ways. They trounce upon people's liberties left and right, and it seems they can't be stopped.

It's a long article of about six pages, but it is well worth your time to make yourself aware of this company's business practices. Boycott, boycott, boycott!