Slashdot Mirror
Monsanto Agrees Not to Sell "Terminator" Seeds
flanksteak writes "Monsanto has bowed to pressure not to sell single-use seeds for their genetically modified crops. These so-called "terminator" seeds work only once. The resulting plants produce sterile seeds that can't be used to grow more food. This forces farmers to keep buying seed to grow additional crops. Monsanto says it's a way to recoup the cost of genetic engineering. Are we going to have to buy "seed" licenses to grow food? Read about it at the USNews Web site." On a planet covered with 6 billion humans, agriculture is our most important concern. Yes, more important than the Internet. We rarely pay attention to food-growing on Slashdot, but nerds need to eat too. (Fun fact of the day: even frozen pizza and Hostess cupcakes are made from farm products!)
The really scary issue with the Terminator gene is that of cross-pollination. No one knows how likely GM products are to cross fertilise with nearby crops, nor do they know how close they have to be to be "nearby". This is a huge question over GM in general, and the doubt is sufficient to justify a halt on the entire commercial usage of GM crops, until more is known.
If Terminator crops cross-pollinate with non-GM, then the seed from that plant will also be substantial sterile (I'm assuming Terminator is dominant, else how do they produce it commercially). This means that not only will the crop of seed purchased from Monsanto fail to deliver seed for next year, but so may the neighbour's crops. Why should any farmer or agri-business have the right to destroy another farmer's crop like this ?
(UK poster - we're scared and angry on this side of the pond, not just the duck squeezers)
I just don't understand the ruckus about this. Conventional hydridized crops don't breed true; if you want to replant the same hybrid you must buy new seeds anyway.
When corporations willingly restrain themselves, I have to ask "For how long?" What's stopping them from threatening to introduce this again in 5 years. And 5 years after that. How long before the media and people in general will ignore them doing this, because they've heard about happening so many times?
(Keep in mind what Nestle did in China - giving formula to new mothers for a few months for free - until they dried up, and then they started charging them for it. The UN pointed out to them they were violating human rights and made them stop. They started again 5 years later. What can the UN do? You can't continually work people into a frenzy every 5 years over the exact same thing.)
I have no doubts that these seeds will be back.
-- Your friendly neighbourhood cynic.