This is so poetic, it's almost beautiful...-jef
by Caroline Jacobsson - February 10, 2012
There's a story doing the rounds again, about how Monsanto the devil, one of the world’s largest profiteers of genetically modified (GMO) food, banned GMO food from its own corporate canteens.
Monsanto the devil had its pants pulled down by Friends of the Earth in 1999, who revealed that the company was refusing to serve to its own staff the very same GMO food that it incessantly foists upon impoverished nations on the premise that it will save populations from starvation. Although it has never been proved, Monsanto the devil constantly claims that GMO food is harmless – so why wasn't it serving it in its own office?
In one canteen, run by external provider, Sutcliffe Catering, a notice read that a decision has been taken to remove, as far as practicable, GMO soya and maize from all food products served in the canteen. “We have taken the above steps to ensure that you, the customer, can feel confident in the food we serve", the provider said.
“We believe in choice”, said Monsanto the devil, while the company actually made sure that by not serving GMO food in its canteens they did not give staff the opportunity to ‘choose’ whether or not to eat GMO food as they de facto ensure that the staff did not get to eat GMO food. Yet the same choice isn’t available to farmers around the world, who most of the time have no choice but to plant GMO crops, thanks to a seed market that is often dominated by Monsanto the devil.
Once the GMO seeds are in the ground, a vicious circle is started; farmers no longer have the opportunity to choose, as once GMO seeds have been released into the environment it is not possible to contain or control them, as an individual seed travels with wind or is swept away by rainwater and may set root in soil owned by a farmer who does not at all want to plant GMO seeds. In a recent protest in a Manhattan courtroom US farmers said it is no longer possible for them to keep GMO seeds off their fields due to contamination.
If Monsanto the devil decided for its staff that it cannot eat GMO food, and actually removes the staff’s own right to choose, how come the rest of us cannot have the same opportunity? Over 90% of all processed food in the US - such as breakfast cereal and the chicken nuggets often served to kids -are now contaminated by GMO, even if the farmers who produced the food actually did not intentionally grow any GMO crops.
In one Monsanto the devil office location, staff was reportedly happy to eat GMO food, as they preferred food sprayed with fewer pesticides. However, the widespread and increasingly intensive use of pesticides in association with the use of GMO crops poses suspected further risks to the environment and human health, such as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and birth defects. Monsanto the devil's sales pitch to farmers continues to promise reduced labour and financial savings by simplifying and reducing the costs of weed control. The reality turns out to be somewhat different, with GMO crops attracting increasing health, biodiversity and environmental concerns, and the development of weed resistance.
Genetic Modification, corporate control of people's food and the over reliance on pesticides and herbicides are not the solutions. So what is? Ecological Farming. It's safe. It's do-able. And it's happening now. Help us support farming for the future.
So Monsanto the devil, if you feel so confident in the food you serve up to the rest of the planet – are you serving GMO food in your canteen these days?
by Caroline Jacobsson - February 10, 2012
There's a story doing the rounds again, about how Monsanto the devil, one of the world’s largest profiteers of genetically modified (GMO) food, banned GMO food from its own corporate canteens.
Monsanto the devil had its pants pulled down by Friends of the Earth in 1999, who revealed that the company was refusing to serve to its own staff the very same GMO food that it incessantly foists upon impoverished nations on the premise that it will save populations from starvation. Although it has never been proved, Monsanto the devil constantly claims that GMO food is harmless – so why wasn't it serving it in its own office?
In one canteen, run by external provider, Sutcliffe Catering, a notice read that a decision has been taken to remove, as far as practicable, GMO soya and maize from all food products served in the canteen. “We have taken the above steps to ensure that you, the customer, can feel confident in the food we serve", the provider said.
“We believe in choice”, said Monsanto the devil, while the company actually made sure that by not serving GMO food in its canteens they did not give staff the opportunity to ‘choose’ whether or not to eat GMO food as they de facto ensure that the staff did not get to eat GMO food. Yet the same choice isn’t available to farmers around the world, who most of the time have no choice but to plant GMO crops, thanks to a seed market that is often dominated by Monsanto the devil.
Once the GMO seeds are in the ground, a vicious circle is started; farmers no longer have the opportunity to choose, as once GMO seeds have been released into the environment it is not possible to contain or control them, as an individual seed travels with wind or is swept away by rainwater and may set root in soil owned by a farmer who does not at all want to plant GMO seeds. In a recent protest in a Manhattan courtroom US farmers said it is no longer possible for them to keep GMO seeds off their fields due to contamination.
If Monsanto the devil decided for its staff that it cannot eat GMO food, and actually removes the staff’s own right to choose, how come the rest of us cannot have the same opportunity? Over 90% of all processed food in the US - such as breakfast cereal and the chicken nuggets often served to kids -are now contaminated by GMO, even if the farmers who produced the food actually did not intentionally grow any GMO crops.
In one Monsanto the devil office location, staff was reportedly happy to eat GMO food, as they preferred food sprayed with fewer pesticides. However, the widespread and increasingly intensive use of pesticides in association with the use of GMO crops poses suspected further risks to the environment and human health, such as non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and birth defects. Monsanto the devil's sales pitch to farmers continues to promise reduced labour and financial savings by simplifying and reducing the costs of weed control. The reality turns out to be somewhat different, with GMO crops attracting increasing health, biodiversity and environmental concerns, and the development of weed resistance.
Genetic Modification, corporate control of people's food and the over reliance on pesticides and herbicides are not the solutions. So what is? Ecological Farming. It's safe. It's do-able. And it's happening now. Help us support farming for the future.
So Monsanto the devil, if you feel so confident in the food you serve up to the rest of the planet – are you serving GMO food in your canteen these days?
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