The Impact Of Monsanto

Everyone has likely already heard the name Monsanto, the largest seed distributor in the world. Nearly fifty percent of all seeds in the world are owned by only three corporations. These companies account for trillions in fertilizer, pesticide, seed patents and herbicide sales annually. These companies have been building a seed empire within the food industry for over thirty years now and they have plans to patent every seed with biotechnology. Thoreau wrote in his book, “The condition of the operatives is becoming every day more like that of the English; and it cannot be wondered at, since, as far as I have heard or observed, the principal object is, not that mankind may be well and honestly clad, but, unquestionably, that the corporations

To get his shoestrings he speculates in herds of cattle.” Thoreau could foresee the impact that altering the genes of these plants could have on a society. The most misleading hopes proclaimed by GM technology firms is that this will help solve the world’s hunger. Granted some of this technology does offer higher single crop yields, but traditional farming techniques generally produce higher yields per acre. In a study done on 8,200 fields, by The Board of Agriculture at the National Academy of Sciences former board of director, Charles Benbrook, Roundup Ready soybeans yielded fewer bushels of beans than non-GM. They grew five different strains of Monsanto soy plants in four different places with varied soil types The study found that the average yield for non-GM soybeans was 51.21 bushels per acre and 49.26 for GM. This was confirmed later in another study at the University of Nebraska 's Institute of Agricultural Resources. "The numbers were clear," stated Dr. Elmore, the head director of the study. They found that on average GM seeds, which are more expensive, produced six percent less than non-GM relatives, and eleven percent less than the highest yielding conventional crops. The yield for Bt corn, however, in other studies was higher. But this did not lead to greater profit because GM related costs in terms of insecticides, fertilizer and labor were

Jacqueline Pongracic, wrote “ I’ve been treating patients in the field of allergy immunology for fifteen years and in recent years I’ve really seen the rates of food allergy skyrocketed(Sheehann). Estimates show that twelve million Americans have serious food allergies as evidenced by abnormal blood immunoglobulin levels. In 1996, Brazilian nut genes were placed into soybeans in order to provide additional protein called methionine. However, some individuals are so allergic to the nut, they can actually go into anaphylactic shock. Following several incidences the product was removed from the market before any actual fatalities occurred(Lacey). A study released in 2013 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, food allergies among children increased approximately fifty percent between 1997 and 2011("Facts and Statistics - Food Allergy Research & Education"). However, FDA officials who are entrusted to protect the health of the general public have gone against the advice of their own scientist to test for allergies and have declared genetically modified foods are essentially equivalent to regular foods. Many research studies have positively confirmed this kind of overall risk for genetically modified foods. Two research studies showed that farm workers who were exposed to genetically modified Bt corn sprays exhibited extensive allergic reactions. Another study that lasted over a decade showed that genetically modified peas caused allergic lung damage in mice, the