Bayer pulls out of Genetic Engineering Research in India; Admits to

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Bayer pulls out of Genetic Engineering Research in India;

Admits to Greenpeace the Future is in

" GM WATCH " <info

 

Mon, 15 Nov 2004 15:10:30 GMT

 

 

Bayer pulls out of Genetic Engineering Research in India; Admits to

Greenpeace the Future is in

'Conventional' Breeding.

http://www.gmwatch.org

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Press Release, 15 November 2004

Bayer pulls out of Genetic Engineering Research in India; Admits to

Greenpeace the Future is in

'Conventional' Breeding.

 

In an admission of immense significance to the entire genetic

engineering (GE) industry, Bayer Crop Science has conceded to

Greenpeace India

that all its projects on genetically engineered (GE) crops have been

'discontinued.'

 

This admission is a direct result of a protracted direct action by

Greenpeace at the Bayer headquarters in Mumbai on 30th September 2004.

In a

letter sent to Greenpeace last week, Aloke V. Pradhan, head of

Corporate Communications states Bayer's future plans for India,

" Overall, Bayer

Crop Science India will continue to focus in the coming years on its

conventional plant breeding research programme. "

 

" We don't need genetically engineered crops to feed India, " said Divya

Raghunandan, genetic engineering

campaigner for Greenpeace India. " Around the world, in fact, the

promises made by the genetic engineering industry have been unfulfilled,

whether of increasing crop yields or reducing pesticide use. " (see

footnote

1) She continued, " It doesn't surprise us that Bayer is giving up GE

experiments in India. They saw the writing on the wall - the Indian

public was not going to accept their manipulated cabbages and

cauliflowers -

and they cut their losses. It's time for the rest of the industry to

give up on this misguided and inappropriate technology. "

 

The significance of this pull-out for Bayer, and indeed the entire

genetic engineering industry, cannot be overestimated. In the second

largest country in the world, with 80% of the population involved in

agriculture, the Indian market for agro-chemical and seed companies is

enormous. This retreat follows two decisions that set Bayer back

earlier this

year. In March 2004, the company announced they would be pulling out of

GE crop

research in the UK. A few months later, in June, Bayer announced they

would not pursue commercialization of GE canola in Australia. Bayer's

letter to Greenpeace India concedes that research into engineered

cabbage, cauliflower, eggplant, tomato and mustard seed has all been

halted.

 

Bayer's withdrawal from GE research around the world is part of a

larger pattern of retreat in the global biotechnology industry. For

example,

in a high profile turn-around, Monsanto globally abandoned genetically

engineered wheat research earlier this year. The company also shelved

its Australian work on genetically engineered canola one month prior to

a similar decision by Bayer.

 

" It is clear that popular resistance to genetic engineering is not

diminishing as the industry had hoped it would, " said Doreen

Stabinsky, GE

campaigner for Greenpeace International. " No matter what country we're

talking about, consumers are on the same page. They don't want to eat

genetically engineered food. That's good news for farmers and good news

for the environment. "

 

Divya Raghunandan, GE campaigner, Greenpeace India: +919845535406,

draghuna

 

further information: Protests in Bombay against Bayer; Campaign against

GM Rice in India

 

Coalition against BAYER-dangers

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