monsanto pt 2: round-up ready crops

Round-up Ready crops are crops genetically engineered to withstand Monsanto's herbicide glyphosate , which can be applied to farmland to kill all weeds which would otherwise interfere with crop growth. The herbicide is strong enough it will kill most plant life (including the crops, had they not been engineered to be resistant). Round-up Ready crops include everything from soy, corn, wheat, sugarbeets, canola, rice, and others.

The herbicide and crop duo works quite well to control weeds. However, these crops are nearly dependent on the herbicide to grow properly- round-up ready soy uses about 2-5 times more herbicides than non-GM crops. Farmers who use round-up primarily use a no-till system- meaning that tilling practices are not used to control weeds; they depend entirely on the herbicide to do the dirty work.

Let's gloss over the adverse effects of pumping glyphosate into a local environment and watersystem (which researchers at the Institute of Biology in Caen, France, claim to have highly toxic effects to human cells- at much lower levels than the amount actually recommended as agricultural use levels).

what happens when natural processes stumble into the mix, or better yet, when companies try to bill for these processes? Percy Schmeiser, a Canadian farmer, had his canola crops cross-contaminated with the genetically engineered Monsanto canola from a farm nearby. Monsanto then insisted that he pay their Technology Fee... and also sued him (along with other small farmers such as Rodney Nelson) on patent infringement.
Besides the fact that it is ridiculous to sue farmers for using seeds which they did not plant (and may not even want in their fields), it is a little disturbing to think how easily these round-up ready crops can spread- off of transportation vehicles, through wind and weather, and even through wildlife/pollination. GM crops are popping up in random places- in gas stations, parking lots, and roadsides...