Biotech's War on Mexican Corn

[nosmokes]

it really sucks, that monsanto and syngenta and the rest are destroying the heritage crop of mexico, and they're doing it on our nickle thanks to nafta and fucked up farm bills. and now lou dobbs and everyone wants to make the poor undocumented immigrant from mexico that can't make a living growing corn down there any more public enemy #1. there are so many things wrong with this picture it's hard to know where to begin.-joe
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original-counterpunch

Big Biotech is Forcing Farmers to Buy GMO Seeds
The Plot Against Mexican Corn

By JOHN ROSS

The "diableros" (hand truck hostlers) from Lagunilla market clustered around La Lupita's Ricos Tacos in the rough and tumble barrio of Tepito were not smiling. "Yesterday these cost me six pesos. Today, it's eight. Tomorrow, who knows, ten?" complained Rodrigo Aldama, 28, pointing at the three greasy tacos on his paper plate, "Vitamin T is rich man's food now." Vitamin T, a staple of urban diet here, includes tacos, tostadas, tamales, tortillas, and most any kind of street food concocted from corn.

The steep jump of tortilla prices here this January to as high as 18 pesos a kilo (they were six in November) have unleashed a storm of protest and suspicion. "Someone's getting rich on my 'ricos tacos' but it isn't me" lamented Lupita Perez. Many point fingers at the corn distribution system, which is run by transnationals.

Rodrigo had another theory: "the tortilla is Mexico but now they want us to eat white bread like the gringos." Others see even more sinister motives behind the sudden spike in tortilla prices which the government of freshman president Felipe Calderon blames on short supply and high prices for white and yellow corn - the opening of the Mexican milpa or corn patch to genetically modified corn.
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complete article here

[AX10]

1. Oh, but Biotech is all good! All Science is good.

There are no conflicts of interest. No coporate profits. People will benefit from Bio-Science so just ignore this little "problem". No big deal.



:sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm::sarcasm:

[donheld]

2. most american's are so ignorant on this

I'm not sure if it's not partially willful ignorance.

[sweetheart]

3. good idea, time for some corn smoke!

Biotech and cross breeding have improved the corn, one must admit...
http://www.cannabisseeds.com/purchase.htm

.. the problem is that food-crops are legal, otherwise the seeds would be readily available.

[nosmokes]

4. sorry sweetheart, GE corn hasn't done a damn thing to*improve* the stock

and in fact threatens the very existence of some ancient 'heirloom'
varieties. the fact that big ag corps like monsanto can end up owning the seed patents, denying the farmers the ability to save seeds from one season to the next effectively making slaves out of them, is just one of many concerns.

[sweetheart]

6. all things are bred, the public owns the patent

Humankind has long garden'ed this earth, for many
thousands of years that, no matter one mans wilderscape,
was the last man's garden; and as such, we are at a crisis in gardening techniques,
ones that will provide some longevity, some dignity, to a toxic
system of corrupt 'grabbing' of patents on genetic seeds modified and bred for thousands
years around the world for agricultural corn (grain of feed).

The problem is not that the seeds are highly specialized breeds,
that indeed *are* improved or we wouldn't plant them,
but rather that the intellectual property system has failed us,
and the public ownership of 1000's years natural right has been
unrepresented with monsanto/cargill inc... in the long run, the
genetic seeds are all the public right, the absurdity of coopting a
living genetic by a private entity is absurd... like 'ownership',
from the paper society, engifted with sillyness and stupdity.

[Shallah Kali]

10. Corps are patenting food crops. Now farms must buy seeds every year instead of keeping and reusing

This has nothing to do with improving food supply and all about big corporations wanting use to pay and pay again.

[GoneOffShore]

5. Yet another example of corporatism

stifling a native food culture.

This is one of my pet peeves about big agri business. They are killing the small farmer with "improved" seed.

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. I wonder if the Monsanto pollen has anything to do with the demise

of the bee?

[file83]

8. Good question.

Something weird is going on when Corn in Mexico is becoming too expensive for the locals. Corn is almost every traditional meal they eat - how could this happen? NAFTA? ENVIRONMENT? BIO-TECH? Probably all three are causing this.

[The Backlash Cometh]

9. It would certainly help Monsanto's stock if nature's little pollinator

was no longer around. Seed would become that much more important for propagation. But I doubt that they would have intentionally done anything to harm bees. It's just probably one of those pesky side effects that they never bothered to look into.

[Shallah Kali]

11. I wouldn't be surprised considering how it kills butterflies

hybridization and the like are all well and good but tinkering with the fundamental building blocks of all creation isn't something to be done lightly.

[The Backlash Cometh]

13. Damn. Certainly if it kills butterflies, it would kill bees.

[Buzz Clik]

12. That has to be the most misleading title ever.

I gave up on the screed after about 20 paragraphs -- shortly after it was mentioned that planting GM corn seed in Mexico is illegal.

A more fitting title for the article would have been, "The US is Evil."

[nosmokes]

14. the planting of GMO seed is illegal in many countries, including most of the

EU and new zealand. not surprisingly in countries where there is still more democracy than corporatocracy there are either very strict limits on GMOs or outright bans. sorry that disturbs you.

[mhatrw]

15. Great post. n/t