The World According to Monsanto
The World According to Monsanto
Extract from a report on the Boule de Neige website, March 14, 2008
Commentary on this first part by "Boule de Neige"
What are the stakes of GMOs?
BOULEDENEIGE presents to you, right away, this first part of a report on an exceptional documentary explaining the strategy adopted by the American multinational corporation to spread GMOs across the planet and attempt to control the entire global food supply.
MONSANTO, the world leader in biotechnology and one of the largest chemical companies of the 20th century: 90% of the GMOs grown worldwide belong to it.
Monsanto is also one of the most controversial companies. It is also responsible for aspartame, Agent Orange, PCBs, and bovine growth hormone.
CAN WE TRUST MONSANTO?
For 30 years, Monsanto concealed from the public and even from its own employees the fact that they knew PCBs (insulating oils used in transformers) were extremely toxic to the human body. When they finally disclosed this to authorities, the authorities sided with Monsanto. This is an unforgivable scandal.
Over time, they contaminated the air and water; today, the entire planet is contaminated by PCBs. They cause many diseases, the most well-known being cancer. Women exposed to PCBs give birth to children with reduced IQ. PCBs impair thyroid function and disrupt sex hormones.
In 2001, 20,000 people from Alliston (Missouri, USA), where a Monsanto PCB factory was located, sued the company. The firm was ordered to clean up the site, compensate victims, and build a specialized hospital. However, the damages awarded represented only a fraction of their profits, and no Monsanto executive was ever prosecuted. In the American legal system, it is extremely rare for corporate executives to be held criminally responsible.
Thus, it is profitable to keep secrets.
One might wonder what secrets they are hiding today. We can never trust a company like Monsanto to tell the truth about a product or a pollution issue. Never.
For example, in 1974, Monsanto launched a total herbicide (Roundup) that quickly became a massive success, claiming it was biodegradable and environmentally friendly. The company was twice found guilty of false advertising: first in New York in 1996, and again in France in January 2007. The courts ruled that statements such as "biodegradable," "environmentally friendly," and "leaves soil clean" were misleading advertising... "especially since, according to studies conducted by Monsanto itself, only a 2% biological degradation was achieved after 28 days." That’s why the label "biodegradable" has recently disappeared from the bottles.
But that’s not all. Numerous scientific studies show that Roundup is highly toxic. For example: Roundup disrupts cell division (study by Professor Robert Belé, Roscoff). He works for CNRS and the Pierre and Marie Curie Institute. He studied Roundup’s effects on fertilized sea urchin eggs.
Here is what he says:
Professor Robert Belé: "The biggest surprise was that Roundup affects cell division. What is affected by Roundup is a key mechanism of cell division—not the division of cells themselves, but the mechanism that controls cell division. To understand how cancer arises: cells start out non-cancerous, and at some point, changes occur within them. The primary change is what we call 'genetic instability.' And this is precisely the first disruption we observed with Roundup. That’s why we say Roundup 'induces' the initial steps leading to cancer. We are careful not to say it 'causes cancer,' because cancer would only appear in thirty or forty years. We immediately realized the potential consequences for users, since the doses studied were far below those used by people. We felt we had to alert the public quickly. I thought the best approach was to inform my superiors, but I was surprised—very, very surprised—because I was strongly advised not to communicate, due to the GMO issue behind it!"
This story is incredible: they concealed Roundup’s toxicity to protect GMOs.
ROUNDUP READY
ASA: American Soybean Association (American Soybean Association). John Hoffman, its vice-president, is an unconditional advocate of biotechnology.
John Hoffman: "In spring, on May 1st, I spray Roundup once to kill weeds. Then, six or seven weeks later, I apply it a second time. That’s all I need for the rest of the year. Before the 'Roundup Ready' technology, fields were full of weeds. We had to inspect them and pull weeds by hand—very labor-intensive. The Roundup Ready system saves me time and money."
Apparently, Monsanto’s new wonder has everything to attract farmers. But how does it work? How can soybeans survive Roundup applications?
At the heart of the soybean cell lies the nucleus, containing the soybean’s DNA—the genetic structure. To create its GMO, Monsanto crosses species barriers. Researchers selected a gene from a bacterium that confers resistance to Roundup. This gene is attached to microscopic gold particles, which are shot into soybean cells using a gene gun. The gene integrates into the DNA and produces a protein that allows the plant to resist Roundup. When the herbicide is sprayed, it kills all weeds except the soybean.
Admittedly, this is a remarkable technological achievement. But still, this soybean is destined to be sprayed with a powerful herbicide that will end up on the consumer’s plate.
One might assume it was thoroughly tested before being released on the market.
Who was the Minister of Agriculture at the time? Dan Glickman served as Bill Clinton’s Agriculture Secretary from 1995 to 2000.
Dan Glickman: "At the beginning of my term, there was a consensus in the agri-food sector and within the U.S. government. If you didn’t wholeheartedly support biotechnology and GMO crops, you were seen as anti-science, anti-progress. Honestly, I believe we should have conducted more tests, but agribusiness companies didn’t want to because they had made enormous investments. As someone responsible for regulating agriculture, I faced strong pressure—let’s say, not to be too strict! The only time I dared speak out during Clinton’s presidency, I was reprimanded—not just by industry, but also by government officials. In fact, I delivered a speech..."