4 ms·

The last point about seed blowing has been debunked. It is listed as myth number 2 here: http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/10/18/163034053/top-five-myths

The last point about seed blowing has been debunked. It is listed as myth number 2 here: http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/10/18/163034053/top-five-myths-of-genetically-modified-seeds-busted http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/10/18/163034053/top...

wonderwonder 9y ago
I stand corrected
oldsklgdfth 9y ago
I find it distrubing that some of the most widely used arguments against Monsanto can be myths. It makes me really question the information I get whether supportive/critical. That aside they are pretty evil.
xigency 9y ago
I wouldn't say this is a conclusive debunking. According to your source from 2012: > So why is this a myth? It's certainly true that Monsanto has been going after farmers whom the company suspects of using GMO seeds without paying royalties. And there are plenty of cases — including Schmeiser's — in which the company has overreached, engaged in raw intimidation, and made accusations that turned out not to be backed up by evidence. > But as far as I can tell, Monsanto has never sued anybody over trace amounts of GMOs that were introduced into fields simply through cross-pollination. Another source [1] says, "its report, called Seed Giants vs US Farmers, the CFS said it had tracked numerous law suits that Monsanto had brought against farmers and found some 142 patent infringement suits against 410 farmers and 56 small businesses in more than 27 states." I wonder how judiciously the NPR reporter reviewed these 142 patent infringement suits to discern whether none concerned small amounts of cross-contamination. Color me skeptical. [1] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/feb/12/monsanto-sues-farmers-seed-patents https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/feb/12/monsanto... (2013) [2] Primary source: https://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/files/seed-giants_final_04424.pdf https://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/files/seed-giants_final_...
- maxerickson 9y ago
  They sue for patent infringement when someone sprays Roundup on plants from seeds that they didn't pay royalties on, not just when someone grows contaminated seeds. I'm not sure how I feel about that. There's lots of potential for biopatents to be harmful but there is also a pretty huge gray area.
- 7sigma 9y ago
  There was a court case brought by OSGATA against Monsanto. The lawyers for Osgata admitted that Monsanto never sued anyone for accidental contamination but their argument was that there was a chilling effect which discouraged their members from growing non conventional seed for fear of Monsanto suing them. The case was thrown as it was ruled as Monsanto stated that they didn't intend to sue if you had trace amount of contamination. https://www.biofortified.org/2015/12/lawsuits-for-inadvertent-contamination/ https://www.biofortified.org/2015/12/lawsuits-for-inadverten...

wonderwonder 9y ago

I stand corrected

oldsklgdfth 9y ago

I find it distrubing that some of the most widely used arguments against Monsanto can be myths. It makes me really question the information I get whether supportive/critical. That aside they are pretty evil.

xigency 9y ago

I wouldn't say this is a conclusive debunking. According to your source from 2012: > So why is this a myth? It's certainly true that Monsanto has been going after farmers whom the company suspects of using GMO seeds without paying royalties. And there are plenty of cases — including Schmeiser's — in which the company has overreached, engaged in raw intimidation, and made accusations that turned out not to be backed up by evidence. > But as far as I can tell, Monsanto has never sued anybody over trace amounts of GMOs that were introduced into fields simply through cross-pollination. Another source [1] says, "its report, called Seed Giants vs US Farmers, the CFS said it had tracked numerous law suits that Monsanto had brought against farmers and found some 142 patent infringement suits against 410 farmers and 56 small businesses in more than 27 states." I wonder how judiciously the NPR reporter reviewed these 142 patent infringement suits to discern whether none concerned small amounts of cross-contamination. Color me skeptical. [1] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/feb/12/monsanto-sues-farmers-seed-patents https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/feb/12/monsanto... (2013) [2] Primary source: https://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/files/seed-giants_final_04424.pdf https://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/files/seed-giants_final_...

maxerickson 9y ago
They sue for patent infringement when someone sprays Roundup on plants from seeds that they didn't pay royalties on, not just when someone grows contaminated seeds. I'm not sure how I feel about that. There's lots of potential for biopatents to be harmful but there is also a pretty huge gray area.
7sigma 9y ago
There was a court case brought by OSGATA against Monsanto. The lawyers for Osgata admitted that Monsanto never sued anyone for accidental contamination but their argument was that there was a chilling effect which discouraged their members from growing non conventional seed for fear of Monsanto suing them. The case was thrown as it was ruled as Monsanto stated that they didn't intend to sue if you had trace amount of contamination. https://www.biofortified.org/2015/12/lawsuits-for-inadvertent-contamination/ https://www.biofortified.org/2015/12/lawsuits-for-inadverten...