Could Monsanto Be Responsible for One Indian Farmer's Death Every Thirty Minutes? . . .

[OneBlueSky]

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/05/05/Could-Monsanto-Be-Responsible-for-One-Indian-Farmers-Death-Every-Thirty-Minutes.aspx

Over 1,500 farmers in the agricultural Indian state of Chattisgarh have committed suicide after being driven to debt by crop failure. The state was hit hard by falling water levels.

(snip)

According to the National Crime Records Bureau of India, more than 182,900 Indian farmers took their own lives between 1997 and 2007. It estimates 46 Indian farmers commit suicide every day. That equates to roughly one suicide every 30 minutes!

And although some will argue that natural events are to blame, such as lack of rain, the fact many believe the situation can be traced directly back to the unconscionable tactics of Monsanto, which is driving these farmers into very desperate actions.

Over the past decade, millions of Indian farmers have been promised radically increased harvests and income if they switch from their traditional age tested farming methods to genetically modified (GM) Bt cotton seeds. So, they borrow money to buy GM seeds, which need certain pesticides, which requires more money. And when rain fall is sparse, the GM crops fare far worse than traditional crops – a fact that these farmers oftentimes don’t learn until it’s too late and they’re standing there with failed crops, spiraling debts, and no income.

Monsanto has been ruthless in their drive to use India as a testing ground for genetically modified crops, and it gives us a very clear picture of what could be in store for the rest of the world’s small farmers if they’re allowed to continue.

- more . . .

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/05/05/Could-Monsanto-Be-Responsible-for-One-Indian-Farmers-Death-Every-Thirty-Minutes.aspx

[BeFree]

1. Makes perfect sense

A turn away from time tested farming practices along with getting into debt
and using new-fangled pesticides on their fields certainly makes sense as to
why these farmers' suicides are happening.

Basically, when ever I see Monsanto stuff I make a cross to ward off the evil.

[HopeHoops]

2. Monsanto is evil

The vast majority of corn in our country (something like 90%) is one of 12 varieties that come from only 2 strains. If a pest or disease were to find a vulnerability in one of those strains, half of our corn supply could vanish.

Central America has something like 4,000 native varieties of corn and traces of GM varieties are showing up in the DNA of almost all of those that have been sampled recently.

The Monsanto business model is simple: sell them something that can't reproduce so they have to buy more every year. They get farmers addicted to "higher yields" and "disease resistance" and train them to poison the land and waterways with pesticides and high-nitrogen fertilizers and they know they will come back again the next year because they have abandoned the centuries old tradition of saving seeds for the next year's crop.

Part of the "M" in "GM" is making the child crops sterile. The seeds will produce a plant, but no fruit. In other cases, they will produce, but the fruit will not carry the desired traits (sweetness, size, disease resistance). Either way, saving seeds is of no value.

As an example. I planted some yellow pattypan squash a few years back. I didn't notice anywhere that it said it was a "hybrid" or GM seed. Of course a few rotted and some volunteers came back the next year. None of them were all yellow. They were green, green/yellow, and a few were a really unattractive shade of gray. They all LOOKED like pattypan, but they were hard, had little or no flavor, tough flesh, and were basically useless as food.
In a previous garden, I regularly had volunteer squash that I would allow to grow (it comes up very early) and never had a weird crop even after multiple generations.


Monsanto, and mega-agribusiness in general, is evil.

[LiberalFighter]

3. Yes!

[tabatha]

4. I see you are also a Mercola fan.

The daily newsletter is great if the promotions are ignored.