Monsanto Watch

[SecretSquirrel]

Some more info about Roundup, etc:

http://www.i-sis.org.uk/DMPGR.php

Scientists pinpoint how very low concentrations of the herbicide and other chemicals in Roundup formulations kill human cells, strengthening the case for phasing them out, and banning all further releases of Roundup-tolerant GM crops
Roundup formulations are lethal cocktails

The four Roundup formulations are mixtures of glyphosate with various adjuvants. (An adjuvant is ‘helper' substance added to aid the effect of the active ingredient.) The Roundup formulations are currently the top non-selective herbicides worldwide and increasing, as more than 75 percent of genetically modified (GM) crops are Roundup tolerant. Glyphosate and its major metabolite, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) are main contaminants in rivers. The adjuvants, not often measured in the environment, are usually considered ‘inert' and protected as trade secret in manufacturing. Among them, the predominant one is polyethoxylated tallow amine (POEA) . POEA is used as a surfactant in Roundup formulations to improve solubility and penetration into plants.

Three human cell lines were tested: primary cell line HUVEC from umbilical cord vein epithelium, embryonic cell line 293 derived from kidney, and placenta cell line JEG3. All cells died within 24 hours of exposure to the Roundup formulations.

The Roundup formulations (Rs) contain different amounts of the active ingredient glyphosate: Roundup Express, 7.2 g/L (R7.2) ; Roundup Bioforce, 360 g/L (R360) ; Roundup Grand Travaux, 400 g/L (R400); and Roundup Grand Travaux Plus, 450 g/L (R450). They were compared with glyphosate (G), AMPA, and POEA .  All Roundup formulations in the study, along with individual chemical ingredients, were tested at concentrations from10 ppm (parts per million) to 2 percent (the recommended agricultural usage level), which means that the Roundup formulations were diluted up to 100 000 times or more.

The researchers found that the presence of the other chemical ingredients in Roundup formulations, such as POEA, actually amplified glyphosate's toxic effects. The toxicities of the Roundup formulations were not proportional to the amount of glyphosate they contained, and are most likely due to POEA and other as yet undisclosed ingredient(s) present in all the formulations. POEA by itself is much more toxic than the Roundup formulations, while AMPA is more toxic than glyphosate.

[badgoat]

Has anyone sued Monsanto for having their fields contaminated by GMO crops? Have they won?

[unrepentantcowboy]

Has anyone sued Monsanto for having their fields contaminated by GMO crops? Have they won?

I don't know. I do know that Monsanto sued farmers for having GM crops in their field without having bought seed from Monsanto and Monsanto won in court.

[Grower]

Multiple times.

        

[OutOfStep351]

There was one guy whose land was contaminated who fought back and won. Set a legal precedent, so now farmers that have their fields contaminated can force Monsanto to pay for cleanup costs.

This company needs to be resisted.

[graveday]

Resisted is a good first step.  I would say exterminated, and failing that, genetically altered.

[OutOfStep351]

Nice. Poetic justice.

[pamela]

There was one guy whose land was contaminated who fought back and won. Set a legal precedent, so now farmers that have their fields contaminated can force Monsanto to pay for cleanup costs.

This company needs to be resisted.

this company needs to be dismantled.

[OutOfStep351]

They're deeply connected to all the major players. Resistance would be challenging, led alone dismantling it. They're attempting to control the food supply for profit, and so far they've gotten their way. Takes a great deal of power to pull that off.

[SecretSquirrel]

More Monsanto -- this must be some truly scary shit for them to back off on their application.

Monsanto has abandoned its ambitious plans for two types of a so-called "second generation GM crop" rather than accede to a request from European regulators for additional research and safety data.

Monsanto has informed the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) that it no longer wishes to pursue its application for approval of GM maize LY038 and the stacked variety LY038 x MON810. Both of these varieties were designed to accelerate the growth rate of animals. Two letters were sent to EFSA from the Monsanto subsidiary company Renessen at the end of April this year confirming the withdrawal of its applications originally submitted in 2005 and 2006. The letters cite "decreased commercial value worldwide" and state that the high-lysene varieties "will no longer be a part of the Renessen business strategy in the near future." There has been no announcement of these decisions on the Monsanto web site, and there are no mentions on EFSA or European Commission web sites either.

Scientists who have followed these two applications are quite convinced that the "decisions to withdraw" have nothing to do with commercial considerations and everything to do with food safety. In other words, the varieties are too dangerous to be allowed onto the open market. Objections came from scientists at the Canterbury University's Centre for Integrated Research in Biosafety (INBI), New Zealand, who warned that the new corn was not safe for humans when cooked. They also expressed concerns about unpredictable health effects, increased levels of toxins in high- lysene corn, and possible allergies and links to cancer.

http://en.greenplanet.net/food/gmo/1142-the-giant-steps-back-on-two-gmos-why.html
 

[pamela]

wow SecretSquirrel, that's good news, but scary at the same time. If they are willing to back off, wonder just how bad the reactions to that stuff actually was?

[wiccawench]

http://weblog.greenpeace.org/makingwaves/archives/2009/11/the_buzz_about_ge_rice_in_chin.html#more

Growing approximately 59.5 million tonnes annually, China is the world’ biggest rice producer. The vast majority of the rice is consumed domestically, only 600,000 tonnes are exported. Genetically engineered food endangers health, environment and food security and exports of GE rice would likely be met with scrutiny abroad as the Bt-63 strain is not authorised in the EU or any other country.

For the farmers of China rice is more than just food- it is their livelihood and the very basis of their culture.

"The commercialization of GE rice puts China’s food security in danger since most of the GE rice patents are controlled by foreign companies such as Monsanto," warned Lorena Luo, GP China’s Food and Agriculture campaigner.

[Grower]

This morning Bloomberg radio was talking about the little noted but creeping rise in food commodities.

[badgoat]

I am tired of seeing Monsanto's propaganda machine operating at full power on the channels I watch.. I see a commercial many times a day for http://www.monsanto.com/americasfarmers/, as if Monsanto was trying to make life better for the very people they have been fuckering over for decades.

[pamela]

good grief.