Monsanto: What are we eating?

Why are there so many campaigns against Monsanto?

• The Organic Consumers Association’s “Millions Against Monsanto” campaign
• “Occupy Monsanto”
• The most recent “March Against Monsanto”

Monsanto’s first product was the artificial sweetener, saccharin, later found to cause cancer in lab rats, yet is still sold today as Sweet’N Low (Kitchen Porch Catering refuses to serve this poison).

During World War II, Monsanto funded uranium research, leading to the development of the first atomic bomb.  Monsanto also became a leading producer of synthetic fibers and plastics, including Styrofoam.

Monsanto created the “House of Future” at Disney’s Tomorrowland, which was made entirely of plastic and was eventually torn down. They went on to developed Astroturf (fake grass).

Remember the DDT trucks? The now-banned insecticide: DDT? How about the industrial coolants called PCBs, Agent Orange, the defoliant that was used during the Vietnam War, which harmed the health of the Vietnamese people and U.S. veterans? All Monsanto’s creations.

More recently, Monsanto has become the main producer of genetically engineered (GE) food products and seeds. It produced the GE artificial sweetener aspartame, sold under the trade names of NutraSweet and Equal, and recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH or rBST), a genetically engineered steroid injected into cows to increase milk production. More about this on my blog post GMO Breakdown.

Today, Monsanto is the main producer of genetically engineered seeds — seeds made to tolerate the treatment spraying of Roundup herbicide (which it also produces), seeds that have been engineered to produce their own pesticide (Bt crops), and seeds engineered to do both.

During the last election, Monsanto was the main donor behind the “No on Proposition 37” campaign, which would have required the labeling of GE foods in California. Monsanto’s GE seeds are patented, and Monsanto has sued hundreds of American family farmers who unknowingly have had these patented seeds growing on their farms due to cross-pollination, seeds blowing onto their property, or them being co-mingled with conventional seeds in grain elevators. Monsanto is responsible for the hundred of farmers in India who are committing suicide each month because it is the only way for them to get out of debt once they realize their fate with buying genetically modified seeds and chemicals from Monsanto.

Nothing is good about Monsanto and now is a time to do whatever you can to take a stand against them.  Using any of the links above, you can find all the information you need to get involved!

Photo Credit: Steve Snodgrass