Have you unknowingly invited Monsanto to your garden party? In 2005, Monsanto grabbed 40% of the U.S. seed market and 20% of the global seed market by acquiring Seminis, making them the largest seed company in the world. They supply the genetics for 55% of the lettuce on U.S. supermarket shelves, 75% of the tomatoes, and 85% of the peppers, with strong holdings in beans, cucumbers, squash, melons, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, and peas. Monsanto has been buying up every seed company they can. By visiting the Seminis site, you can see their history of acquisitions. Syngenta and Dow are doing the same. Monsanto is now legally registered to hold the trademark for many heirloom seed varieties — strategically positioning themselves to profit from the growing heirloom or open-pollinated home-gardening market. Since 2015, the Bayer takeover of Monsanto has merged a chemical giant with a seed giant, leaving control of the world’s food supply in too few hands. The merger also linked two key parts of agricultural production, reducing competition in the food chain. In 2020, Bayer controlled well over the 2017 estimate of 29% of the global seed market and 24% of the global pesticide market. There are serious concerns about increased farmer dependency on fewer suppliers and higher prices due to weak competition. The deal also increased the power of a smaller group of companies over intellectual property and patents that lock up much of the world’s commercially produced food supply, weakening farmers’ ability to use and reuse their seeds. We already know the dangers of glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup, declared “probably carcinogenic in humans” by the World Health Organization in 2015. With their increased market share, these companies gain more power over what we plant and consume, raising food health and safety concerns related to their seeds AND chemicals. In the words of Vandana Shiva, "Seed is not just the source of life. It is the very foundation of our being." Let's honor that wisdom by choosing seeds from companies like these that prioritize biodiversity and the independence of our food system. #SeedSaving #HeirloomSeeds #FoodSovereignty
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Yes, I agree. That is why I as a customer here in Sweden only buy ecological flour based on old seed types by Saltå Kvarn.
That's why I buy from Fedco!
Thank you. I have been shocked to realize that the very real Monsanto concerns seem to have become 'forgotten' by this new generation. Even when they appear in court for illegal pesticide use, they drop a hunk of cash on the problem and slip away to rinse and repeat. grr.