Monsanto
takes home $23m from small farmers, seeks to maintain 'seed oligarchy'
It will also determine whether patent owners of other products which can make copies of themselves – such as stem cells and strains of bacteria used for medical research – and can continue to control the use of their products after selling them. It’s a scenario that wasn’t even considered until recently.
It’s been dubbed a 'David and Goliath' trial by many, as multi-billion-dollar Monsanto goes head to head against 75-year-old Indiana farmer Vernon Hugh Bowman, who said that fighting for justice is his main concern.
“I really don’t consider it as David and Goliath,” Bowman told the Guardian. “I don’t think of it in those terms. I think of it in terms of right and wrong.”
At the center of the case is Monsanto’s protection of its patented soybean, known as Roundup Ready. When farmers like Bowman plant the company’s seeds, they are only allowed to harvest the resulting crop – not keep any for next year’s harvest.
However, farmers are able to buy excess soybeans from local grain elevators, many of which are likely to be Roundup Ready seeds. One of Bowman's trips to such a grain elevator put him in Monsanto’s sights.
Protesters against Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) are chained to a vehicle as they block a delivery entrance to a Monsanto seed distribution facility in Oxnard, California September 12, 2012 (Reuters / Mario Anzuoni)
The company wasted no time suing Bowman, eventually winning a legal settlement of around $84,456 in 2011. Unwilling to back down, Bowman took the case to the Supreme Court. Though trials are expensive, it was Bowman’s lack of cash that prompted him to take the case to America’s highest court, ironically.
The Supreme Court trial is scheduled for February 19.
The farmer has received an impressive outcry of support, including CFS and the Save our Seeds campaigning group.
Anti-GMO activists rip open bags containing "MON 810", a variety of genetically modified maize (corn) developed by Monsanto Company (AFP Photo / Eric Cabanis)
RT,
13
Febraury, 2013
Seed
giant Monsanto has won more than $23 million from hundreds of small
farmers accused of replanting the company’s genetically engineered
seeds. Now, another case is looming – and it could set a landmark
precedent for the future of seed ownership.
The
lawsuits concern Monsanto’s patent rights as the company strives to
prevent farmers from replanting crops grown from the company’s
seeds. It’s a concept that a study published on Tuesday – titled
'Seed Giants vs. US Farmers' – referred to as creating a “seed
oligarchy.”
In
the report, the Center for Food Safety (CFS) said it discovered 142
patent infringement suits against 410 farmers and 56 small businesses
in more than 27 states as of December 2012. The amount of money
pocketed by Monsanto comes to a whopping $23 million. The study was
co-produced by the Save our Seeds (SOS) campaign.
Another
case is now on the horizon, and it’s drawing wide public attention:
The verdict of the trial will determine who controls the rights to
seeds planted in the ground.
It will also determine whether patent owners of other products which can make copies of themselves – such as stem cells and strains of bacteria used for medical research – and can continue to control the use of their products after selling them. It’s a scenario that wasn’t even considered until recently.
“We’re
dealing with laws and doctrines that were developed in the 19th
century, where the idea of self-replicating technologies didn’t
exist,” Jorge
Contreras, associate law professor at American University in
Washington told Bloomberg Businessweek.
It’s been dubbed a 'David and Goliath' trial by many, as multi-billion-dollar Monsanto goes head to head against 75-year-old Indiana farmer Vernon Hugh Bowman, who said that fighting for justice is his main concern.
“I really don’t consider it as David and Goliath,” Bowman told the Guardian. “I don’t think of it in those terms. I think of it in terms of right and wrong.”
At the center of the case is Monsanto’s protection of its patented soybean, known as Roundup Ready. When farmers like Bowman plant the company’s seeds, they are only allowed to harvest the resulting crop – not keep any for next year’s harvest.
Under
these rules, farmers have to buy new Monsanto seeds to plant each
season, even if they already have usable seeds in their possession.
However, farmers are able to buy excess soybeans from local grain elevators, many of which are likely to be Roundup Ready seeds. One of Bowman's trips to such a grain elevator put him in Monsanto’s sights.
“We
have always had the right to go to an elevator, buy some ‘junk
grain’ and use it for seed if you desire,” Bowman
explained.
But
the question of whether he really does have that right is still up in
the air. and will be determined by a Supreme Court judge.
Protesters against Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) are chained to a vehicle as they block a delivery entrance to a Monsanto seed distribution facility in Oxnard, California September 12, 2012 (Reuters / Mario Anzuoni)
Monsanto
has claimed it maintains patent rights on its genetically modified
seeds, even if sold by a third party such as a grain elevator. The
company also said this protection extends for generations down, which
means it owns seeds that are 'descendants' of original Monsanto
seeds.
The company wasted no time suing Bowman, eventually winning a legal settlement of around $84,456 in 2011. Unwilling to back down, Bowman took the case to the Supreme Court. Though trials are expensive, it was Bowman’s lack of cash that prompted him to take the case to America’s highest court, ironically.
When
Monsanto originally sued Bowman, he was already bankrupt as a result
of land deal gone wrong, so he had very little to lose. “I
made up my mind to fight it until I could not fight it anymore,” he
said. “I
thought, I am not going to play dead.”
The Supreme Court trial is scheduled for February 19.
The farmer has received an impressive outcry of support, including CFS and the Save our Seeds campaigning group.
Hindering the ‘breakthroughs of tomorrow?’
Monsanto
has set up a website defending its arguments. The company insists a
victory by Bowman in the Supreme Court could “jeopardize
some of the most innovative biotechnology research in the country” in
industries ranging from farming to medicine.
“Without
such protections, anyone could create a virtually limitless supply of
patented technology, eviscerating the incentive to continue the R&D
investments that will bring about the breakthroughs of
tomorrow,” David
Snively, general counsel for Monsanto, said in a statement.
A
victory for Bowman “would
potentially kill the seed industry,” Peter
Corless of Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP in Boston, which specializes in
biotechnology patents, told Bloomberg Businessweek. “No
one would bother doing the research.
If you sold just one round of
seeds, you’d never be able to price high enough to recoup the costs
of development and marketing.”
But
Bowman’s lawyer said that issues regarding research aren’t his
client’s problem.
“The
reality is, he’s not a free-rider,” Attorney
Mark Walters told Bloomberg Businessweek. “He
paid fair value for these seeds and like any owner of personal
property he should be able to use it for any purpose he chooses. It’s
not competitive with first-generation seed that Monsanto sells.”
Anti-GMO activists rip open bags containing "MON 810", a variety of genetically modified maize (corn) developed by Monsanto Company (AFP Photo / Eric Cabanis)
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