Canadian organic farmers sue Monsanto over GM crops

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Friday, January 11, 2002

By Kanina Holmes, Reuters

 

WINNIPEG, Manitoba -- A group of Canadian organic farmers launched a lawsuit

against biotech giants Monsanto Co. and Aventis SA Thursday, seeking

compensation for damages caused by genetically modified canola they say is

blowing into their fields.

" Organic farmers in Saskatchewan have said that the time has come for this

legal challenge, and we're here today to let the world know that,'' said

Marc Loiselle, a board member of the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate (SOD),

a group representing organic producers in the province.

" We claim that the two companies, Monsanto and Aventis, are responsible for

GE (genetically engineered) contamination on multiple grounds, and we're

confident that this will be proven in the court of law,'' Loiselle told

reporters in Saskatoon.

Two organic farmers filed the class-action lawsuit in Saskatoon court on

behalf of all organic farmers in the province, the heart of Canada's bread

basket. The legal action is also aimed at halting plans to introduce

transgenic wheat in the region.

There are about 1,000 organic growers in Saskatchewan, whose farms represent

about 1 million acres (405,700 hectares). SOD alleges that genetically

engineered crops threaten the environment and their industry. " Any kind of

science, whatever it is, if it's infringing on our rights, they don't have a

right to do it, said Arnold Taylor, an organic grower and president of SOD.

The amount of compensation being sought has yet to be determined, but Taylor

estimates it will be " in the millions.''

Organizations that certify crops as organic have zero tolerance for

genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the seed supply. They also prohibit

organic farmers from applying most crop chemicals. Instead, organic farmers

rely on crop rotation, which includes the staggered planting of canola and

wheat, to control weeds.

SWITCH TO TRANSGENIC CANOLA

Many farmers across Western Canada have switched to transgenic canola since

GM varieties were introduced in Canada in the mid 1990s, citing better weed

control and yields. Today, about 60 percent of the canola grown in

Saskatchewan is genetically modified to resist weeds.

Canola, the Canadian variant of rapeseed, is used mainly to produce

processed food ingredients, cooking oils, and livestock feed. Canada is the

world's largest canola exporter.

Organic producers say that pollen from GM canola, which is patented by

Monsanto and Aventis, is blowing on to their fields, contaminating their

crops and their seed supply and driving away premium-paying customers, most

of whom are in Europe.

" They're trying to make these companies pay for their losses that were

sustained by them from having removed a crop, an entire crop from their

selection of crops,'' said Terry Zakreski, the farmers' lawyer, noting that

this is believed to be the first lawsuit of its kind in Canada. " They want

to stop them from introducing another crop that could economically destroy

them if it's allowed to happen,'' said Zakreski.

Agricultural sciences company, Monsanto, which produces Roundup Ready

canola, one of the most widely grown GM varieties, has recently conducted

field trials across Western Canada to develop genetically modified Roundup

Ready wheat. The plants are genetically modified to be unaffected when the

herbicide Roundup in used on the fields to control weeds.

" To me it's just a matter of continuing to give farmers choice in terms of

what they grow,'' said Monsanto Canada spokeswoman Trish Jordan. " And

farmers make choices whether they grow organic or conventional or

transgenic, and they make those choices based on what works for them on

their farm. " Monsanto has said that it will not commercially release GM

wheat until concerns about segregation and market acceptance are addressed.

SOD announced its intention to sue the biotech companies last year but said

new legislation in Saskatchewan permitting class-action lawsuits paved the

way for Thursday's announcement.

Copyright 2002, Reuters

 

 

 

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