Millions join world protests against Monsanto and GMOs

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An estimated 2 million people demon­ strated worldwide on May 25 to protest Monsanto. The corporation, headquartered in St. Louis, is the largest producer and distributor of genetically modified seeds (GMOs)—which are a growing threat to the natural environment, the livelihood of small farmers, and a healthful food supply. GMOs are now in some 70 percent of the processed foods consumed in the U.S.

March Against Monsanto organizers said that events were held in at least 436 cities and 52 countries, from Britain to Argentina.

One of the largest U.S. demonstrations was in Portland, Ore., where the march was esti­ mated at from 3000 to 6000 people. About 2000 marched in New York City, 2000 in St. Paul, 2000 in Eugene, Ore., 1000 in Miami, 800 in Orlando, 800 in Philadelphia, close to 1000 in Sacramento, 400 in Providence, and 100 in Duluth. Hundreds marched in Los Angeles, where home-made signs carried slogans such as “I am not a lab rat!” “Why is the government protecting Monsanto?” “Label GMOs; it’s our right to know,” and “Happy cows do not eat GMOs.”

In Hartford, Conn., from 300 to 500 people rallied in the rain outside the Statehouse— where legislators had recently defeated a bill to require labeling of GMOs to consum­ ers. An organizer told the crowd that this should be a year of grassroots education, so that next year hardly a single person in the state would not know the story of GMOs.

The Monsanto protest movement grew amazingly in just a few months. It started in February when orga­ nizer Tami Canal created a Facebook page calling for mass demonstrations. Canal has told the press that the movement will build on the successful May 26 ac­ tions: “We will continue until Monsanto complies with consumer demand. They are poisoning our children, poisoning our planet.”

Genetically modified crops (GMOs) are grown from seeds that are altered for purposes such as facilitating plant growth and improving appearance; increasing shelf life; speeding the process of conversion to bio­ fuel; repelling insects, viruses, and fungi; and tolerat­ ing chemical herbicides and pesticides. Studies have shown a link between the use of GMOs and increased allergies and organ toxicity. Moreover, the use of GMOs has spawned the use of heavier doses of herbicides and pesticides to combat mounting resistance to the substances by weeds and insects.

Throughout its history, Monsanto has been protect­ ed by federal and state government officials. The cor­ porate media likewise can be depended on to promote the company line. Congressional legislation has virtu­ ally allowed Monsanto and other gentech and chemi­ cal corporations to regulate themselves, with mini­ mum review by agencies such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In 1992, the FDA concluded that there was no difference between genetically modified and non-engineered plants.

The Obama administration is a strong cheerleader for genetically modified foods, swiftly rubber-stamp­ ing in recent years a dozen new seed products as safe and ready to be marketed. Monsanto executive and attorney Michael Taylor became a top official at both the FDA and the USDA under Bill Clinton, and more recently, after another stint at Monsanto, was re-ap­ pointed by Obama to the FDA and to the USDA Office of Foods. In the 1990s, Taylor had a key role in Mon­ santo’s suit against dairy farmers who had dared to label their products “rBGH-free” (referring to the use of recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone).

The May 25 demonstrations received additional momentum from the fact that two days earlier, the U.S. Senate had rejected a farm bill amendment to let states decide whether to require labels on food or bev­ erages made with genetically modified ingredients. And on the same day, the Senate blocked an attempt 12 SOCIALIST ACTION JUNE 2013 protected by U.S. but laboratory studies have indicated that its ingre­ dients, even in low concentrations, can cause human embryonic, placental, and umbilical cells to die. Other studies link Roundup with hormone damage and liver damage in lab rats.

Monsanto promised farmers that the use of Roundup Ready seeds and its other GMO products would reduce the amount of herbicide they needed to apply to their fields. But farmers are now seeing the reverse hap­ pen. Because “superweeds” have become resistant to Roundup on close to 15 million farm acres (especially in the Midwest), the growers in those areas feel com­ pelled to use heavier quantities and stronger com­ pounds of herbicide.

To answer this need, Monsanto’s main competitor, Dow Agrosciences, has a new product for farmers with significantly increased concentrations of 2,4-D— the main ingredient of Agent Orange, which the U.S. military employed in the Vietnam War in the 1970s to defoliate the jungle, and which is blamed for cancer and other fatal diseases.

A similar phenomenon is taking place in regard to an­ imal pests; since rootworms, for instance, are becom­ ing resistant to Monsanto’s GMO corn that is meant to repel them, growers have been greatly increasing the dosage of insecticide that they apply.

Monsanto responded to the May 25 protests with a press statement defending their products and alleging that their seeds help farmers produce more from the land while conserving resources such as water and en­ ergy. The corporation often touts its GMOs as part of the process to “end world hunger.” However, several studies have indicated that genetically modified seeds do not increase crop yields—quite the opposite.

A University of Wisconsin study in 1999 compared soybean yields in 12 U.S. states, and found that GMO varieties were 4 percent lower than with conventional plants. A University of Nebraska study in 2000 found that GMO soybeans were six to 11 percent lower in yield than conventional ones.

GMO seeds have not been engineered to help poor farmers. They have not been developed for laudable goals such as aiding plant growth in marginal soils or arid conditions, or reducing dependency on expensive chemicals and machinery. Instead, they are designed to force farmers to end their traditional practices of sharing and saving seeds (with threats of being sued for patent infringement), and to require them to pur­ (continued on page 9, in “Growing resistance to UPS contract proposal”)