Should Monsanto Be Able To Patent Seeds?

The farmers then give their products to the manufacturers, who represent the bottleneck of the food system (21). “The ten largest companies control half of the world’s seed supply. …Ten firms control 90% of the nearly $38.6 billion pesticide markets (111-112).” Monsanto, being one of the ten companies that controls the world’s seed supply, is a company that has patents on all of its seeds and products. It produces genetically modified crops that are resistant to its own pesticides and herbicides, so that when a pesticide or herbicide is sprayed and it destroys all plants, the Monsanto seed survives because of its resistance. The reason that Monsanto is able to stay in business is because of the economic benefit it poses for the farmers. They are able to produce their crops at a much higher yield because they are losing less of their crops to pests. This higher yield results in lower costs for the consumers as well (Planes). As discussed

Personally, I believe that seeds, no matter how scientifically manipulated, should be considered technology. “Seed priming is defined as controlling hydration level within seeds so that the metabolic activity necessary for germination can occur” (Maiti, 2011). Monsanto does have moral obligations to farmers and consumers to make its seeds available at prices affordable to even the poorest of farmers. According to CEO, Hugh Grant, Monsanto could not exist without farmers. They are our customers-the lifeblood of our company. Traditionally, farmers save seeds from one year to plant in the next year, but Monsanto wanted to force farmers to purchase new seeds from the company every year. “By issuing new seeds each year, Monsanto ensures it will secure a profit as well as maintain control over its intellectual property” (Ferrell & Hartline, 2014).

When the FDA allows Monsanto to release excessive patents on their GMO seeds, they are essentially creating a command economy because small farmers are unable to turn profits without using the GMO seeds from Monsanto. The economic command is furthered, when the FDA allows Monsanto to pass laws prohibiting farmers from replanting seeds from the GMO’s they harvest. Every year, farmers must re-purchase new GMO seeds from Monsanto because their patents have made it illegal to re-use seeds. The former was only the economic and labeling issues with Monsanto’s use of GMO’s. The average citizen is not aware of some of the health dangers of ingesting certain GMO’s.

When one company controls ninety-percent of a market, it is reasonable to open the doors to the possibility of a monopoly. This word is a board game to some, a boring econ principle to others, but a harsh reality for twenty-four million American farmers and their families. (Farmers Feed Us) Monsanto has taken control of the farming world and it is hitting farmers hard. The powerful company controls ninety-percent of the soybean market and much of other farming markers which are a lifeline for farmers across this country. It is clear to many that it is a monopoly, but nothing is being done to break up Monsanto. There is much controversy behind the issue on a political level and on what motifs there may be to keep the company together. Monsanto is hurting farmers by monopolizing the farming market and there are political ties behind the master plan to keep control.

I believe that if a company has a patent seed with a particular gene that shows up in a farmer’s crop should not be able to own that crop. There could be many different reasons why a particular gene shows up in a farmer’s crop. Many of which could not be there fault. For example, Percy Schmeiser was sued by Monsanto for growing one of Monsanto’s seeds. But Percy never bought any seeds from Monsanto. As you can see Monsanto’s seeds must have blown into Percy’s field by accident and started growing. Furthermore, no it’s not a farmers fault that they have someone else’s patent gene in their crops so they shouldn’t have to have their crops taken away.

In my opinion, we should be most concered about India's privitized agriculture and Indian farmers. I believe this because in the last decade more than 250,000 Indian farmers have committed suicide due to the expense put on Monsanto's seeds and pesticides. A problem with the seeds can also be so they are not bred for that area, so they fail more fequently, causing even more stress on farmers. The bigger organizations also use biotech cotton seeds which gives them a higher yeild but also requires higher amounts of water, which they have the funds for. However the smaller companies don't have acess to suitable irrigation and have mainly rain-fed crops, which means they fail more often and the farmers suffer even more. Monsanto's high cost of

If one company owned an entire food crop, it would result in a huge profit of money for that company. However, it would also result in destroying the tradition of farming for farmers and their families. A primary reason why companies would want to own an entire food crop is because they will make a lucrative amount of money. A statistic involving this is stated by www.not-gmoreport.com, “ The cost for Monsanto’s Roundup Ready 2 soybeans in 2010 was $70 per bag, a 143% increase in the price of GM seed since 2001.” This inflation is called seed monopoly. One reason people strongly dislike seed monopoly is because of the way it affects not only farmers, but also the consumers. Farmers will have to pay more money for seeds, which will eventually

For countless centuries, farmers have fed humanity by saving the seed from one year's crop to plant the following year. But Monsanto, the company that claims its motives are to help feed the hungry, has developed what it calls a "Technology Protection System" that renders seeds sterile. Commonly known as "terminator technology" and developed with taxpayer funding by the USDA [US Department of Agriculture] and Delta & Pine Land Company (an affiliate of Monsanto), the process genetically alters seeds so that their offspring will be sterile for all time. If employed, this technology would ensure that farmers cannot save their own seeds but would have to come back to Monsanto year after year to purchase new ones.” The evidence provides a depiction of the deceptive nature of GMO companies like Monsanto. They only have one goal. Profit. As evident by the “terminator technology” employed by Monsanto. We as a species for centuries as stated in the article have collected seeds and planted the next harvest for the previous harvest. Every year with this GMO seed Monsanto forces the small farmers to pay ungodly premiums just to feed their families. A quote from the article titled The Spread of High-Yield Crops Is Depleting

As parents, it is our job to look out for our children. Feeding them healthy, balanced meals is essential to their well being. But what if the products companies promote are not helping our children? What if they are hurting them? It turns out the brands we know and love may not have our best interests in mind when creating their products. Main brand companies use GMOs, genetically modified organisms, in their products. GMOs are created through a process called genetic engineering and in this process an organism’s genetic material is unnaturally modified through human intervention (Benson 2015). Well if companies are using them that must mean they aren’t hazardous… right? Unfortunately, that isn’t entirely true. According to Dick Benson, well over 60 countries world-wide have either banned the use of GMOs completely or have strict guidelines of when and how much they can be used. If so many countries have banned them then why are they being sold in the US?

When focusing on a major topic like genetically modified organisms from an economic standpoint, it is crucial to cover the varying effects of large agribusiness companies that run the biotechnological field, primarily Monsanto. Monsanto, originally founded as a chemical company, has risen to hold a biotechnical science monopoly. While a monopoly is never a good thing, the issues with Monsanto are much larger than that. How exactly do Monsanto and its fellow biotechnology companies cause damage to everything they interfere with? From the death, destruction, and deformation of Vietnam to financial damage to local farmers, from the dangerous chemicals placed in their crops to the false advertising of their company, Monsanto and its cohorts may be the root of all problems and negative aspects related to genetically modified organisms.

Monsanto as an organization needs to recognize the issues it is creating in the world’s crops. As well as society needs to be educated about the dangers and ethics of genetically modified organisms, and how a company like Monsanto can patent a corn or soybean seed’s genetic code.

Food patents are like any other, there with the intention to protect the inventor’s rights over their intellectual property. Patents for recipes and cooking methods are beneficial to their creator without directly harming anyone else, however, patents for plants can be a different story. According to Oregon State University Extension Service patents on plant varieties disallows the user to reproduce from plant cuttings but sexual reproduction is legal. This is more promising than the laws for patented seeds such as those enforced by Monsanto. Food is a necessary good and depending on a single source can be dangerous for a society. If the major agricultural suppliers choose to use the patented seeds then a sudden decrease in quantity supplied

Small farmers have been forced to have at least 70 % of their farm products from Monsanto Company. Farmers that did not adhere to this ideation were segregated and their products lacked market as the company flooded local markets with similar products. These farmers ended

The future of genetically engineered crops depends on what country the crops may be in because in some, GMOs are not allowed. For example, in Scotland they have banned GMOs from growing on their soil because they want to keep their consistent environment beautiful known in the world in which they are trying to protect and enhance the green they have in their environment. Then after the announcement of Scotland not allowing GMOs, Germany decided to follow Scotland and to stop growing GMO crops. Monsanto is an American multinational agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology organization headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Monsanto hope to grow more genetically engineered crops because there has not been a lot of GM crops grown in Europe. Since, Europe has been trying to block the spread of genetically modified organisms which Monsanto is worried.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, only 11% of global land surface is considered suitable for agricultural production. With a surging global population and increased land degradation caused by human activity, higher yielding crops with resistance to various environmental conditions will become essential to maintaining an adequate food supply for the world. Monsanto’s technological innovations in biotechnology, and specifically genetically modified seeds, present a unique opportunity to capitalize on one of the world’s great challenges in the 21st century.