LINKING GE ALFALFA CONTAMINATION IN WASHINGTON WITH BASIC FARMER RIGHTS IN OSGATA et al v. MONSANTO. "It’s no surprise that alfalfa has also become vulnerable to GM contamination; in fact, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted this problem two years ago. Because alfalfa is a perennial crop pollinated by bees, USDA head Tom Vilsack briefly contemplated restricting where GM alfalfa could be grown in order to protect organic and conventional crops from inevitable GMO pollen drift. Vilsack called for a policy of “coexistence” to protect the interest of both GMO and non-GMO farmers. However, pressured by both Monsanto and the White House, the USDA abruptly approved Monsanto’s alfalfa in 2011 with no restrictions whatsoever....Leaving aside the financial losses, a group of organic and conventional farmers are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to protect them from Monsanto’s notoriously aggressive patent enforcement...Given the ease with which GM crops spread, farmers worry they could be bankrupted by lawsuits forcing them to prove that they did not intentionally use Monsanto’s technology." Jim.
Posted on: Wed, 18 Sep 2013 14:00:01 +0000
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