Monsanto Sends Seed-Saving Farmer to Prison

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Monsanto Sends Seed-Saving Farmer to Prison

 

From Agribusiness Examiner #246

May 12, 2003

By <avkrebs

 

MONSANTO CRACKDOWN ON SEED USERS

IT CLAIMS VIOLATE GE AGREEMENTS

SENDS FIRST FARMER TO PRISON

 

PETER SHINKLE, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH: A farmer opposed to Monsanto Co.'s

genetic seed licensing practices was sentenced pMay 7] in federal court at

St. Louis to eight months in prison for lying about a truckload of cotton

seed he hid for a friend.

 

Kem Ralph, 47, of Covington, Tenn., also admitted burning a truckload of

seed, in defiance of a court order, to keep Monsanto from using it as

evidence in a lawsuit against him.

 

The prison term for conspiracy to commit fraud is believed to be the first

criminal prosecution linked to Monsanto's crackdown on farmers it claims are

violating agreements on use of the genetically modified seeds.

 

Ralph pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court on February 21 of lying in a

sworn statement in the civil case.

 

At issue is seed-saving, the age-old agricultural practice of keeping seed

from one crop to plant another. Monsanto's licensing agreement forbids it, a

policy that has drawn bitter opposition from some farmers.

 

In court Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Richard Webber ordered Ralph to

serve the prison time and to repay Monsanto $165,649 for about 41 tons of

genetically engineered cotton and soybean seed he was found to have saved in

violation of the agreement.

 

Monsanto says it has filed 73 civil lawsuits against farmers in the past

five years over this issue.

 

Officials of the company, based in Creve Coeur, hoped that Ralph's case

would send a stern message. Monsanto has distributed information about it

and about the civil litigation as a warning.

 

Before Ralph's sentencing Wednesday, a Monsanto official told Judge Webber

that other farmers would closely watch the outcome.

 

" Their behavior will be set according to the results here today, " said Scott

Baucum, an intellectual property protection manager for Monsanto.

 

The ruddy-faced Ralph appeared in court in blue jeans and a plaid shirt. He

made no comment during or after the hearing. His attorneys have asked him to

hold his peace because his civil case with Monsanto --- in which he has

already been ordered to pay more than $1.7 million to the

agribusiness giant --- is still not over.

 

But Ralph has been outspoken about his feelings. He said in a deposition in

2000 that opposition to Monsanto led to his decision to burn the bags of

seed.

 

" Me and my brother talked about how rotten and lowdown Monsanto is. We're

tired of being pushed around by Monsanto, " he said then. " We are being

pushed around and drug down a road like a bunch of dogs. And we decided we'd

burn them. "

 

Monsanto's new seeds have won widespread acceptance among American farmers.

An example is genetically modified soybean seeds, which are designed to work

with Monsanto's herbicide Roundup.

 

The seeds, which won government approval in 1994, are expected to account

for 80% of the 73 million acres of soybeans planted in 2002 and 2003, the

Department of Agriculture says.

 

Monsanto and its supporters say its fees are justified so the company can

recoup costs and pay for future research.

 

Farmers who refuse to pay the fees obtain an unfair advantage over others,

Monsanto says.

 

Some critics contend that the company's pricing is excessive and too tough

on farmers.

 

" Farmers were always able to compete by saving seed. It's really a question

of the corporate profit - that's what's being protected. If you can't save

seed, you've got to buy it, " said Lou Leonatti, an attorney from Mexico,

Missouri, who represents Ralph in his civil case.

 

People from Tipton County, near Ralph's home, wrote to tell Judge Webber

that farmers there had suffered some hard years.

 

Paul D'Agrossa, attorney for Ralph in the criminal case, argued for

probation so his client could continue to work the soil and support his

teenage son.

 

But Webber, who explained that he had saved seed on the family farm where he

grew up, said he could not ignore Ralph's efforts to conceal evidence.

 

" I'm not interested in making an example of Mr. Ralph. At the same time, I

can't turn a blind eye to his conduct, " the judge said.

 

Taking note of the planting season, Webber said he would not require the

farmer to report to prison before July 1.

 

 

http://www.organicconsumers.org/ge/prison051403.cfm

 

 

 

 

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