Outline

This paper will analyze the Monsanto's takeover of our food seeds in the market. Further this paper will analyze the possible control of Monsanto on this market. In case of patents on plants and genes that are granted temporary monopolies and farmers of prohibition on saving seeds, forcing them to buy new seed company every year or pay the license to use patented seeds they have saved.

Monsanto's Takeover of Food Seeds

Since mid 1990, only five biotech giants - Monsanto, Syngenta, Bayer, Dow and DuPont - have bought more than 200 other businesses between them to control our access to seeds.

Philip Howard of Michigan State University, which has produced the unique visual to illustrate growing concentration of power in hands of the few companies, said that taking control of seed market has been "spectacular" and it's harder to get for farmers to find alternatives.

In U.S. for example, where 90 percent of soybeans are genetically modified crop varieties, many conventional farmers have had difficulties in obtaining seeds genetically modified plants.

Howard said that growing power of seed companies is "incompatible" with renewable agricultural practices, such as save and replant seeds. He says the solution to restriction of their control would be through prohibition of practice of patenting of seeds, plants and genes.

THE patent gives the company exclusive rights to sell and develop the new invention. Howard and others argue that “patenting of seeds excessive" by giants of biotechnology is allowing them to control the large number of seeds and that leads to an increase in seed prices and reduced seed choices farmers.

For example, pests such as armyworm can be detrimental to the crop. It only takes three grains damaged to equal loss of one bushel per acre. When ears are damaged by various pests such as armyworm, yield loss can be uploaded and directly ...