Roundup Essay -- Monsanto’s Soya Bean

If you read Wall Streets reports, they dont babbleing of soya bean as originating in China. They dont talk of soya bean as soya bean. They talk of Monsanto soya. Monsanto soya is protect by a patent. It has a patent number. It is therefore treated as a creation of Monsanto, a product of Monsantos intelligence and innovation. Vandana shibah (Barsamian, 1997)Introduction Monsanto is a Saint Louis Chemical manufacturer that is a major player in the weed killing business. Monsanto has quite a terrible past. They developed and produced the notorious defoliant Agent Orange used in the Vietnam War, they invented the debatable recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH), and they were the inventors and worlds main producer of polychlorinated biphenols (PCBs) which are now banned but still linger in our soil and water (Arax, 1997). Presently, Monsanto is commonly known for its potent herbicide named Roundup. As the biggest-selling weed killer in the world, Roundup accounts for 17 percent of Monsantos replete(p) yearbook sales of $9 billion (Arax, 1997). The main ingredient of Roundup is glyphosate. Glyphosate is the 8th most commonly used herbicide in U.S. agriculture and the imprimatur most commonly used herbicide in nonagricultural settings (Cox, 1995). Its estimated annual use according to the U.S. EPA is between 15 and 20 million pounds in agriculture and between 4 and 6 million pounds elsewhere (Arax, 1997). Monsanto claims that Roundup breaks bundle quickly in the soil, so that little or no toxic byproduct accumulates in plant or animal tissue - a viewpoint often disputed. Monsantos patent on Roundup will foul in two years, and when this happens, countless chemical companies will undoubtedly stomach into the mark... ...Susan Benson, and Rachel Burstein. A Growing Concern. Mother Jones January / February 1997 37-43. Barsamian, David. We Cant Afford To sop up a Sacred Car Rather Than a Sacred Cow. The advanced September 1997 36-39. Bruno, Kenny. Say I t Aint Soy, Monsanto. Multinational Monitor January / February 1997 27-30. Cox, C. Glyphosate, decompose 1 Toxicology. Journal of Pesticide Reform Fall 1995 Vol. 15, No 3. Cox, C. Glyphosate, Part 2 Human Exposure and Ecological Effects. Journal of Pesticide Reform Winter 1995 Vol. 15, No 4. Perils Amid Promises of Genetically Engineered Foods by Dr. Mea Ho. Biology Department, Open University, U.K. November 1996. WWW.GREENPEACE.ORG/GENENG/INDEX.HTML Why Consumers and Farmers Should Avoid Monsantos Genetically Engineered Soybeans A Greenpeace Report. WWW.GREENPEACE.ORG/GENENG/INDEX.HTML