Monsanto obliges any farmer buying Roundup Ready® soybean seeds (and presumably other Roundup Ready® crops as they come to market) to sign a Growers' Contract. The contract lays down astonishing constraints on farmers.
One season's planting only: Farmers who buy Roundup Ready® soybeans are only allowed to sow them for one cropping season. Soybeans can normally be saved from harvest and used for the next planting. Soybean seed saving is even promoted by farmers organisations in Europe as a means of cutting costs. Monsanto will not tolerate this and farmers have to promise not one seed will be resold or saved from their harvest for replanting, research, sale as seed, genetic analysis or reverse engineering. This is the end of the breeding and marketing line, as far as Monsanto is concerned.
Post harvest responsibility: The farmer is responsible for ensuring the above rules are not broken by anyone within three years of purchase of the seed. This means that anyone the farmers sells his/her harvest to has to follow the rules _ or else the farmer gets penalised! And the penalty is enormous. Monsanto will seek retribution of damages equal to 100 times the value of the Roundup Ready® gene multiplied by the number of seeds involved in the infringement plus "reasonable" attorney's fees and expenses (presumably at Monsanto rates). Thus, if the Roundup Ready® gene per se represents US$ 5 per 50 pound bag of seed, a farmer deemed liable for any of the prohibited acts would have to pay US$ 500 for every bag of soybeans plus the legal charges. That a farmer should be responsible for the use of his/her crop for three years after marketing is a shock alone. That it carries such a financial burden, likely to increase, is bordering on the unthinkable.
Roundup only: The Growers' Contract stipulates quite clearly that only the Roundup formulation of glyphosate may be used on the crop. Monsanto's seeds can only be treated with Monsanto's herbicide - by force of law now.
Monsanto police: Farmers who sign on to grow the soybean are obliged to allow Monsanto representatives inspect and test their fields to ensure the contract is being complied with. The contract does not say that the farmer must be present at inspection time. Monsanto's right to police farmers holds for three years after purchase of the seed.
Post farmer responsibility: The obligations of the agreement are fully binding on all heirs, representatives, successors and permitted assigns of the seed buyer. However, the farmer cannot transfer his/her rights under the contract to anyone without Monsanto's explicit agreement.
Originally posted by phoenixhasrisin
What is stopping you from purchasing seed somewhere else?
Originally posted by InSpiteOf
I mean, who else is the biggest competitor to seed sales other than mother nature?
However, you do have a point. These seeds arent natural, and monstano isnt the only seed seller ( i guess tahts 2 points.)
Originally posted by Dulcimer
It all comes down to a yield of your crop. You want a good yield because prices are so low. There product delivers I guess.
www.monsanto.ca...
Originally posted by mrwupy
A smart man would stock up on seeds right now that are all natural. In 20 years they will be worth a fortune.
Originally posted by shots
Originally posted by mrwupy
A smart man would stock up on seeds right now that are all natural. In 20 years they will be worth a fortune.
They have been doing it for years they are called heirloom seeds. I have been buying mine for almost 30 years now. Most of the new seeds just plain suck from all the modifications they have made just so they can raise the crop output.
Originally posted by thelibra
If not, any survivalists here know of a reliable heirloom seed dealer?
And secondly, are there any downsides to harvesting the seeds from produce grown from heirloom seeds?
