Recently my friend, Sherry, alerted us to the Monsanto buy-out of Seminis Seed Co. and how this was affecting one of our local seed companies here in Maine that we use...Fedco.
Fedco Seeds gave the run-down in this article about Monsanto's 1.4 billion dollar CASH payment for Seminis as well as assuming all of their unpaid debt. They do an excellent job of explaining the ramifications of what this means for seed companies and why this is such an ominous problem as they begin to explain the question:
Why Drop Monsanto?
The current industrial seed system rests upon the unholy trinity of biotechnology, corporate concentration and intellectual property rights. Each is mutually reinforcing and none of the three stands without the support of the other two.
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To me just the fact that Monsanto can slap down that amount of cash in the first place tells us something right there. Then the fact that they would slap down that kind of cash for a SEED COMPANY tells us even more. Please don't even begin to imply that Monsanto has no agenda here.
What I was so heartened to see, though, was that when Fedco polled their customers, they received an overwhelming response...and the major response was not to compromise...which means continuing to provide honest to goodness untainted-by-Monsanto seeds. Which also boils down to telling Monsanto to take a hike!
Here are some the responses Fedco provided in the article:
Fedco Drops Monsanto/Seminis
We responded to the news by polling our customers. Should we drop the Seminis/Monsanto line, phase it out, keep it but give it its own customer code, or maintain it without change? We received an unprecedented 1,157 responses. 54.8% voted for us to drop the Seminis/Monsanto line immediately, and an additional 17% to phase it out over time. Many included thought-provoking comments such as these:
• Drop the Seminis varieties unless this puts the entire coop in jeopardy. • Every dollar that goes to Monsanto does not go to a producer who is protective of agriculture, our world, our health. • You don’t need to sell your soul for a Sunsugar. • Let the customers decide! • Phase out as you find quality replacements. • Call upon my sense of adventure to try the new varieties you find! • Unbury the supplier codes and make them more prominent. • Give your customers a choice on their purchases for a transitional period…tax the b…ds for the public good…and spread the money like manure for our new crop of seed providers—breeders, growers and distributors. • It’s a hard thing to fight a Monsanto when we’re so deeply embedded in a system that produces Monsantos. Sort of like Jefferson hating slavery while owning slaves. • Buyers’ choice is real democracy. We, the buyers either keep them in business or put them out of business. • Double the retail price for Monsanto seed and send the additional receipts to those who suffer from Monsanto like Percy Schmeiser. • Monsanto should be Rounded Up and composted. • We’ll survive on the sweet tastiness of the moral high ground.
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I'm sure this decision's going to cause Fedco some major readjustments, no small amount of disappointments, a bit of confusion, a likely hit to the bottom line...but at the end of the day, that's OK! Let's not compormise" was the resounding sentiment...and for that sentiment alone among so many is a triumph in and of itself.
The other thing that's really great is that so many more people out there are truly gettin' it...including myself! I haven't understood the whole corporate food dilemma entirely..it's taken me some time to connect all the dots. And I've learned so much about what's at stake not only for us here in America, but for all of us around the world... in really only the past couple of months or so. But now our children are gettin' it too...so much in fact that they call Wal-Mart 'slavery food' and want to pray for small farmers around the world when we say our bedtime prayers. That totally warms my heart and gives me some real hope for the next generation!
So "You GO Fedco" ... we're here to support you! And I hope this can encourage and strengthen all of us to bravely stand firm with our local food, farm, garden, and seed producers and providers as well!
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