The State Department Lobbies on Behalf of Monsanto and GMOs

The crony food mega-corporation Monsanto is reviled by organic food activists across the United States. Many believe that their GMO crops are unsafe, and, due to the wealthy company’s investments into the campaign funds of politicians, politically-appointed regulators tend to give Monsanto a little more regulatory “benefit of the doubt” than they give to the local family farm.

Furthermore, Russia Today is reporting that WikiLeaks caught the State Department using taxpayer funds to send connected GMO lobbyists to other countries to lobby on behalf of their private international business interests. In related news about a case called Bowman v Monsanto, the Supreme Court ruled against a local farmer for using Monsanto-designed seeds, which he received in a basket of different grains from a third party, without paying “seed royalties,” despite the fact that he signed no agreement to pay additional fees to Monsanto. Does the US government work for the people or has it become a de facto contractor for Monsanto and other GMO food corporations?

Monsanto Has Proven It Can Afford to Fund Its Own International Lobbying

Americans have different opinions on GMO foods. Some find them to be life-saving inventions that increase food yields worldwide. Others find them to be Frankenstein-like abominations against nature. Regardless, the US government has no business sending GMO lobbyists to other countries to promote their financial interests. Food corporations are wealthy enough to pay their own way for these types of trips.

According to RT, Food and Water Watch analyzed the WikiLeaks cables and discovered that the State Department was actively lobbying on behalf of pro-GMO policies in a designated list of GMO skeptical nations across South America, Europe, and Africa. To make matters worse, officials achieved this by requesting taxpayer funds and using them to send lobbyists from Monsanto and other GMO companies on trips to other countries. Why do the world’s wealthiest corporations need to take taxpayer funds to send their lobbyists overseas when they already have enough money to purchase favors from the US government?

Monsanto Pulls a Lars Ulrich

Monsanto is fast becoming the Metallica to family farms’ Napster when it comes to seed royalties. The company apparently does not believe in its own ability to produce top-quality seeds, as it is using a bizarre collections scheme in which farmers are sued for back royalties based on a patent when genetically modified seeds reproduce naturally after being planted. This makes about as much sense as someone patenting a new dog breed after convincing a combination of dogs to mate, and subsequently getting royalties each time those dogs reproduce — for generations.

When arguing that Monsanto should have the right to sue farmers into oblivion whenever one of their creations naturally reproduces on that person’s property, Chief Justice John Roberts said, “Why in the world would anybody spend any money to try to improve the seed if as soon as they sold the first one anybody could grow more and have as many of those seeds as they want?” The answer is simple. Being first to create something is extremely profitable. Also, the first company to develop a product is typically recognized as the trusted leading brand, and future upgrades by the same company tend to be perceived as the best. Chief Justice Roberts seems to think that inventors are motivated by a desire to sue people. Also, naturally-reproduced seeds gleaned from Monsanto’s source seeds are not functionally similar to a digital download. Nature reproduces Monsanto’s seeds no matter what the government says and will frequently reproduce and redistribute them around the world, patent or not. Each new seed is a new product. If Monsanto wants to sell licensing agreements for seed use to farmers, that’s reasonable, but people who aren’t party to an agreement like that shouldn’t have to pay Monsanto every time one of these seeds reproduces.

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