Monsanto will take down Organic Farmers-Invest in Organic-Or We Lose

We need to give our money to the organic industry before Monsanto takes all the organic farmers to court one by one and wins. We need to make sure that the Organic industry has the funding they need to get great lawyers otherwise as individuals they don't stand a chance. Buy NON-GMO and don't eat poison-your body has to work pretty hard to get the poison out of your system-then you wear deodorant to try and keep it in!

We have to help these people, or the organic industry will be a thing of the past and you will be eating BHT around the clock (Not that you already don't).


Monsanto takes over Organic Farmers Land (old news but a goody just to show how much this company really gives a crap about farmers-look around for farmer lost land to Monsanto):

This article originally appeared on Care2.

***

Monsanto’s bullying tactics received a legal nod of approval on February 24th, when Judge Naomi Buchwald dismissed a suit brought against the company by the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association (OSGATA). The association was joined by 82 other plaintiffs. Nearly 300,000 organic farmers were represented in the action.

According to Judge Buchwald, the plaintiffs failed to prove their case. Only one farmer and one seed distributor claimed to have already purchased contaminated seed. Neither of them claimed Monsanto’s seeds were among the “offending seeds.” Monsanto had demanded royalty payments from only one of the plaintiffs. The judge did not consider the company’s history of threats and suits against conventional farmers sufficient evidence Monsanto would sue the plaintiffs.

OSGATA’s president, Jim Gerritsen, himself an organic farmer [and Utne Reader visionary], published this response on the organization’s website:

Family farmers need the protection of the court. We reject as naïve and undefendable the judge’s assertion that Monsanto’s vague public relations ‘commitment’ should be ‘a source of comfort’ to plaintiffs. The truth is we are under threat and we do not believe Monsanto. The truth is that American farmers and the American people do not believe Monsanto. Family farmers deserve our day in court and this flawed ruling will not deter us from continuing to seek justice.

The dismissive tone of Judge Buchwald’s decision is curious in light of Monsanto’s history with conventional farmers. The company has made a practice of raiding fields in search of any infringements of their patents. Most farmers cave when threatened with massive fines, even if wind and pollinating bees brought the unwanted seed into their fields. So the judge’s statement that the “average of roughly thirteen lawsuits per year is hardly significant when compared to the number of farms in the United States” is more than a little disingenuous.

Monsanto’s Bullying Tactics

In 2008, Vanity Fair published an investigative report on Monsanto’s tactics. “Monsanto’s Harvest of Fear” charges:

As interviews and reams of court documents reveal, Monsanto relies on a shadowy army of private investigators and agents in the American heartland to strike fear into farm country. They fan out into fields and farm towns, where they secretly videotape and photograph farmers, store owners, and co-ops; infiltrate community meetings; and gather information from informants about farming activities. Farmers say that some Monsanto agents pretend to be surveyors. Others confront farmers on their land and try to pressure them to sign papers giving Monsanto access to their private records. Farmers call them the “seed police” and use words such as “Gestapo” and “Mafia” to describe their tactics.

Judge Buchwald ignored some of the farmers’ concerns. She was silent on the issue of Monsanto seed’s contaminating organic fields. She also did not address their contention that Monsanto’s patents were fraudulent.

OSGATO’s lead attorney, Daniel Ravicher, is quoted on the Food Integrity Now website as saying: “While I have great respect for Judge Buchwald, her decision to deny farmers the right to seek legal protection from one of the world’s foremost patent bullies is gravely disappointing.”

Plaintiffs have the right to take their case to the Court of Appeals so Judge Buchwald’s decision will likely not be the last salvo heard in the struggle between small farmers and Monsanto. Still, the outcome is disappointing. David went up against Goliath. In this round, Goliath won.



Read more: www.utne.com...

link: www.utne.com...

Not only will you help the farmers you will help nature-the bees are dying because they are trying to pollinate a plant that has chemicals that look like pollen. You will also help yourself. Your brain sensory comes back to life, and you feel great once your body gets the pesticides and chemicals out-try it if you don't believe me.

Don't give me that crap that it's too expensive-I buy a little from this store and a little from that store. Local grocery stores have an organic section-I buy the deals-or the things I really want or need. Organic veggies are very inexpensive too.

I try very hard to buy/grow only organic, but I'm suspecting more and more that what's being called organic is still GM. I don't trust large retailers at all. I don't even trust the seeds anymore. Yes, I know there are laws in the U.S. and Canada about labeling, but they get very tricky with labels too and we all know our food isn't really monitored all that carefully. Bottom line is that if it's not local, something you can't watch it through the cycle, from seed to food, and see it growing and being tended, you're kind of at the mercy of labels and the government.

What's happening to food in the name of profit is an outrage. and what's even worse is so few realize it or care, even more don't know or remember what real food tastes like, and soon most may never even get a chance to. Sad. Sad. Sad.

Monsanto and their ilk are evil. Straight up.

Better still, grow your own produce in your own back yard. It's actually NOT that hard.

reply to post by samlf3rd


It is a shame companies like monsanto have such global dominance. It should be the other way around. Organic produce should be protected by law instead of biochemical companies..

Really these boys will not stop until the have destroyed the world for money..

Could it be the hidden population control we all have been searching for? The reason the food is so cheap is to get rid of the weak, the ones who work harder and smarter have the upper hand? Are they trying to get rid of people on GOV benefits? Their food from WIC and the State are clearly full of Gluten, Sugar, and a ton of Fat?

Originally posted by babybunnies
Better still, grow your own produce in your own back yard. It's actually NOT that hard.

Monsanto is making laws so you can't grow food in your own back yard-it is "unsafe" for you to consume-you can only eat what they grow for you...

Starting our own farming related business has been an eye opener.

First, there's licenses. I don't understand WHY but if you are just a small, backyard hobby grower, it is a minimum of 75.00 a year license fee, or 125 if you sell anything online. IF you sell or send seeds through the mail, and you're caught, and you don't have a license, they can fine you BIG time and take your plants.

Now we weren't trying to DO organic, because the certification process for that is horrendous. But we don't use pesticides, ect. If you get caught using the word 'organic' and you are not certified organic, once again, you are fined BIG TIME.

Ok, then seeds. Monsanto has been patenting even common varieties of seeds. They aren't GMO- people get it confused- but they patent it and state they have all the rights to it. I was suprised to learn that they've been getting in the seed vaults, using those seeds to claim patent if no one else has. I always thought those seed vaults were like 'insurance' should they screw up the world, I didn't know it was more like a treasure chest for them. I guess if they can get all the seeds in the world, they could patent them all or something, given enough time.

Like Roma tomatos. They patented them as Roma VF- that isn't a GMO, it's just that they convinced the courts to let them OWN the seeds. That means you can't share or sell the seeds, or even save them- you have to buy them from MONSANTO's little companies.

Won't matter to most people, but it's another way for them to make growers PAY THEM in addition to the govts chunk in the licensing and shipping certificates and 'acerage fees for commercial plant production."

Then you have the big producers, like Bonnie, that sell to Walmart and Home Depot and then they sell the plants BELOW COST in order to get you into the garden centers to buy the chemicals, containers, gloves, seed trays, and dirts and stuff, which have a good profit margin.

Now I buy my seeds online from small licensed growers that sell heirloom seeds.
I honestly cannot afford to buy organic. If the price is close, I do. I grow a lot of my own and can my own.

I'm not sure what the answer is, but I FEEL like the govt and big biz has me by the cajones and I don't even have any. Maybe it is just me...but no matter what I do lately or what I want to do, there's some rule, regulation, fee, outrageous expense...something...in the way.

reply to post by hadriana


This is an outrage, I am sorry for you. How can a court let someone patent a damn seed? Idiots! I am mad now I hate hearing news like this!!! How can you patent a damn seed that has been around for ever? They didn't create the M***** F****** tomato!

this is sickening and disgusting.


monsanto should go to h*ll.


peace everybody, and i hope that monsanto goes bankrupt and feels really really bad, for the better of the world.

One can produce one's own organic seeds by leaving a few plants to flower then go to seed and gather for next years crop.
Then sow seeds as required and plant on
No buying of plants or seed required then
This what I do - to Hell with Monsanto.

reply to post by artistpoet


But what if you have a Monsanto seed? It only grows once right? Then you have to buy more-the whole gimmick?

Great idea!

Originally posted by hadriana
Like Roma tomatos. They patented them as Roma VF- that isn't a GMO, it's just that they convinced the courts to let them OWN the seeds. That means you can't share or sell the seeds, or even save them- you have to buy them from MONSANTO's little companies.

That's scary stuff.

If they continue doing this, we should encourage everyone to grow at least one "illegal" tomato plant so LEOs are wasting their time running around trying to stop it. Then video it and post it on YouTube to show the world what is going on.

reply to post by samlf3rd


It is quite apparent that Monsanto ( Bill Gates) is buying off Judges, law makers and the USDA just to name a few. We are being poisoned on a non stop bases while we are paying at high cost for the poison we are being forced to ingest. It is time that a national campaign is launched against them. We will never win in court. We will never win by asking for them to stop. We will never win until we unite together and say we won't take it anymore In the mean time our family our friends and ourselves are dying from it. Next time you go to the doctor, next time you look at your sick and dying family and friends. Next time you bury someone you love. Remember who is responsible, remember what has been done. They won't quit until we are mad as h**l and WE ARE NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE.

reply to post by redrose123


Put your money into Organic and NON-GMO and show them who's boss. Maybe they will all begin selling organic and healthy foods. Get rid of McD's and replace it with an organic market that has a hot bar and a salad bar, and a whole foods, or something. They are shoving this crap in our faces. It's time to stop. I keep posting about it getting tips from ATSers looking for enthusiasm or some drive to keep me going. I now understand there are many of us. We need to work hard at this supporting them because they are the ones supporting us.

reply to post by samlf3rd


And why do we stand for this? No giant protests.. no rallies or threatening to unseat politicians and judges who support this evil corporation?

I think there's some confusion.

Anyone can buy a seed, plant it, and unless the plant is a sterile hybrid, or dies before blooming, you CAN, in theory, save the seeds from then on.

With GMOs you can do this too. They will grow. BUT IT IS ILLEGAL.

But it's NOT just GMOs, its any patented seed. Take black beauty eggplants. They own the patent. YES, you could save and use the seed, but it is illegal if you get caught. You probably won't. They are not GMO, just a good plant that's been bred nature's way, but Mansanto patented it.

If however, you are going to try to sell plants or the seeds, you really have to pay attention to that. You can't sell the patented seeds unless you pay Monsanto for the right to do so- legally. You can't grow the seed and sell the plants unless you've paid Monsanto. Like if you buy 25 corn seeds, that's all y ou can save. Something like that.

You better not get caught with their seed, unpaid for, on your land, or they can sue you and take your land and/or business.

..And they are patenting seeds at an alarming rate. NOT just GMO seeds.

Organic seed does not mean it is not a Monsanto owned seed. Look for HEIRLOOM.

Personally, i don't worry about if my seeds are organic. How much pesticide is going to be on a seed? If I had a certified organic farm, I'd need to use them to keep my certification though.

I had a friend that got her farm certified. She told me what hoops she had to jump through- it was kinda severe- like she had to have the land certified to be under her control and that she'd not applied any chemicals in several years. She'd just bought the place a few years back so she had to wait a length of time, and then she had to have soil tests and stuff. There's a reason that certified organic produce costs so much!

www.ext.colostate.edu...
a bit on the pvp act

www.monsanto.com...

Originally posted by Rockpuck
reply to post by samlf3rd

 

And why do we stand for this? No giant protests.. no rallies or threatening to unseat politicians and judges who support this evil corporation?

I was going to suggest it, but I'm sure that will give a mod a reasons to take this thread down. Can't promote change just talk about it.

We the people have to take control of this nation again, getting it out of the hands of those who riskily try to profit off of us. I feel our judicial system has been severely compromised. The laws and legal practices of our nation are used to insight fear into citizens and shuffle control to the large capitalistic entities. The whole system can work but it needs a complete overall. There are too many expensive lawsuits filed where the only ones that gain are the class action lawyers. The idea of Class action lawsuits were started by these corporations and their legal advisers. It's an action utilized to make all gains by individuals not worth while because a large sum is split up many ways and it takes years to get through the legal system. It's a big time scam to dissuade people from suing. It's easy for a company to fight one big suit and give one settlement than to fight 20 thousand little ones.