The World According to Monsanto

I finally got to see the film The World According to Monsanto and WOW! It was very, very scary. The film shows how Monsanto, one of the world's biggest agrochemical/biotech company, has a history of lies and coverups and has caused many tragedies with its development of dangerous chemicals like Agent Orange, PCBs, and bovine growth hormones (rBGH). Now they are into genetically modified seeds and the coverups and pressure on the government to turn the other way continues. As Monsanto produces more and more GE seeds, the corporation is buying up seed companies so farmers have no choice but to buy Monsanto's GE seeds. Contrary to what Monsanto would have us believe, the seeds are not reducing chemical use nor increasing yields. Farmers are suffering and if they dare try to save seeds, they are slapped with law suits. Then there's the whole labeling of GE foods issue. Monsanto claims that their genetically modified foods are no different than the conventional versions so they don't need to go through a testing and approval process--but at the same time, they are patenting their product. How can you get a patent on something identical to nature.

There's so much more to this movie, but my mind is reeling. One thing that stands out strongly in my mind, however, is that in Mexico they can't find any native species of corn that haven't been contaminated by the GE varieties. In fact, mutant corn plants are showing up in fields that have been contaminated with GE. The GE gene is not getting into the cells, but into the plants and strange growths like multiple ears from one leaf are being found. I buy organic food but how can I be sure it hasn't been contaminated?

I highly recommend you watch this movie.