The World According to Monsanto is an in-depth Documentary that looks at the domination of the agricultural industry from one of the world’s most insidious and powerful companies.We are pleased to bring you the full documentary in 10 parts.
This is one of the most powerful, must see films for anyone interested in the behind the scenes world of the food industry, and how just one world dominating corporation holds the keys and patents to much of the worlds food supply.
Monsanto, which started out as one of the planets largest chemical companies is also responsible for such chemical compounds as Agent Orange, Bovine Growth Hormone, PCBs and genetically-engineered crops.
Related posts:
{ 13 trackbacks }
{ 82 comments… read them below or add one }
Nice piece. It doesn’t leave much room for debate!
The question is, what are we going to do about it. Or rather, what can we do to stop this.
I HAVN’T WATCHED THE MOVIE BUT I’VE BEEN DOING ALOT OF RESEARCH ON WHATS IN THE FOOD THAT WERE PUTTING IN OUR MOUTHS AND HOW IT’S HURTING US AND OUR PLANET. MY GIRLFRIEND CALLED ME AND TOLD ME ABOUT THE MOVIE AND I WAS SO HAPPY WHEN SHE DID BECAUSE IT MEANT SHE FINALLY GOT IT!! SHE CALLED ME TOLD ME ALL ABOUT IT AND SAID THAT HER AND HER FAMILY HAVE GONE ALL ORGANIC FOR ABOUT 2 MONTHS NOW : ) THATS WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT : ) BE AWARE OF WHATS REALLY GOING ON , DON’T SUPPORT IT BUY BUYING FOOD PRDUCED BY THEM AND EDUCATE OTHERS. IF MOST PEOPLE WERE AWARE OF WHAT IS GOING ON THESE COMPANIES WOULD GO OUT OF BUSSINESS!! SO PASS IT ON !!
You got it Natalie, consumers have the power to change things if they stop buying junk foods which contains bad ingredients. It is up to us to stop Monsanto. Let’s act as responsible adults.
Excellent, Excellent!!! I have similar on one of my blogs. “The Future of Food” : http://denbeath1.blogspot.com/2009/04/corporate-take-over-of-our-food-supply.html … Monsanto needs to be stopped.
Yea great one, I remember hearing about how Monsanto has a product that basically creates this wax that is put on fruits and vegetables to give them a glossy coating and make them look more appealing, but it causes some pretty nasty chemicals to seep into the food that can’t be easily washed off.
Surprising CRO Magazine – the magazine for Corporate Responsibility Officers named the underserving Monsanto as one of the 100 best corporations citizens.
Truly mystifying.
The people behind that need to see this video…
editorial@thecro.com
Is this documentary available anywhere on DVD or in a more easily downloadable format?
http://www.hulu.com/watch/67878/the-future-of-food
Not the same movie but similar.
Dioxin is the same chemical the Russians used when poisoning that Bulgarian prime minister.
They have the guts to do the worst things… They are Evil incorporated.
The DVD is available from Seeds of Deception at http://www.seedsofdeception.com/Public/AvailableProducts/index.cfm
Wake up America – this one is your baby now. Parts of the rest of the world has banned some of Monsantos activities (India, EU come to mind) meanwhile the Monsanto monolith continues to grow gaining power through deceptive means.
Check out the relationship between Monsanto and the FDA for a start – it beggars belief.
YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT – DO YOU WANT PESTICIDES WITH THAT?
yes, but it’s so damned delicious!
It’s ashamed that you can’t find a documentary that is balanced. It either seeks to propagandize the benefits of the companies’ work or it demonizes a company as being pure evil. The real truth is usually a mixture of good intentions and ignorance in the pursuit of business. I mean, Monsanto employees aren’t all villains. They have children that eat cereal with milk on it. They actually believe what they say. Sadly, they’ve been wrong about safety on a number of issues. It’s further sad that there are so many hungry people in the world today, and in order to feed them all, genetically modified food crops are probably going to be necessary in the future to feed them all. With regards to this documentary, though, a little more balance would be a great deal more useful than this “documentary” that was created to create a sense of alarm.
Christopher, you need to wake up. This revolving door scheme they used are being used with the Big Bankers that own the Federal Reserve and are in the US Government. They get in and change the law and get us to bailout the big banks that they used to work for. This is all planed out for a One World Government. They got your money and your food and next your life. You need to read up on the the Earth Charter. Created by the UN on what they want to do with this world. They talk about one world government and the population reduction. That’s a nice way of saying ” we need to kill people. Once you look at this, you will find out how far the rabbit hole goes. The people that work at Monsanto are not all evil. It is the top people of the company. They know what is going on. These people have a Agenda and you are in the way.
if the amount of surplus food is greater than needed to sustain a population, a population will continue to grow.
thus, a company set to help increase food supply is by no means going to willingly take part in population control because that is an obvious threat to their business.
i am assuming that since YOU apparently know of this giant conspiracy going on, that the people over at Monsanto know as well.
“Think for yourself – question authority.”
that means EVERY authority, even the ones spreading conspiracy rumors and truths you agree with. most likely you will be like everyone else who shares similar views like yours. you are the ‘outer party’ of George Orwell’s “1984″. you fall into the trap that war is peace, slavery is freedom, ignorance is strength, and that 2+2=5 – AND YOU DONT EVEN REALIZE YOU ARE DOING SO BECAUSE YOU ARE PREDICTABLE!
but – alas however – your heart is in the right place, and so, there is hope.
that was the most inarticulate response i have ever read. I appreciate that you have an opinion, however you write like a 15 year old girl.
What a cheap laugh. That was such a adolescent response. I did not know this site is looking for creative writing. I find your short response to be very thought provoking as a 30 minute sitcom. I noticed that you attacked me and not the message. This trick is played all the time in politics. They attack the messenger and the message is discredited. So I put you to the challenge to debate me on the topic that I wrote on above. If you do not respond, then I will know that you did not want this information getting out.
Christopher, your post was right on. The whole GMO/Agribusiness issue is very polarizing, and it’s hard to find a middle ground. Monty and John however, your comments are unconstructive. The fact is that Monsanto and it’s competitors have a goal of increasing crop production through scientific means, while the more organic sector has the goal of promoting a more symbiotic relationship of humans and nature. Big agribusiness has a ’sustainability’ goal which focuses on sustaining the ever-growing multi-billion human population with affordable food. The organic consortium has a ’sustainability’ goal of growing food which is more in harmony with the natural order and causes less environmental degradation. Both sides support important initiatives. It would be naive to disregard the environment, and would be neglectic to ignore the poor starving masses. Agriculture-both organic and commercial- need to realize that the ultimate sustainable goal is to achieve both environmentally freindly practices, as well as economical production in order to produce the most basic element of human survival.
Nicely said Kyle. There needs to be a healthy/sustainable balance between the two, it’s just too bad that the economical production practices by Monsanto are horrendous. At the time being organic is the only way I can go for now because of it. I love life, this planet and myself too much to ignore it.
DID YOU ACTUALLY WATCH THE MOVIE or do you work for Monsanto?!
Of course I’ve watched the movie. Probably a dozen times. It’s a great documentary about the how bad Monsanto is. The fact that you think that it is in defense of Monsanto, goes to show that you have not watched it. Do you know what this website is about? Or did you surf in here on a Google or Stumble hit? Check out the top header. Thats that text at the top of your page. Environmentalism. Activism. Advocacy.
http://meanmore.com/market/product.php?productid=120
If anyone wants to buy the dvd, I found it here for a reasonable price!
You can buy it here for less than that. This is the only sanctioned place to buy it I was told by the company that made it. http://www.seedsofdeception.com/Public/Home/index.cfm
Unbelievable!!! I always knew Monsanto was a scary corporation and now i know exactly why – pretty scary to think of what could happen if they aren’t stopped. Monsanto sued a farmer in Saskatchewan after some of their gmo seeds blew onto the farmer’s field – the farmer took it all the way to the Supreme Court and Monsanto won – i still can’t understand how that happened. this documentary really needs to get mainstreamed!
re Christopher, how fair is it that Monsanto sues farmers who want nothing to do with gmo seeds because these same gmo seed blow onto their land? how is there a middle ground here?
Let’s all work at it. I sent this article to our local Farmer’s Publication who do *onsanto adds and asked them to file this for future reference. Go Organic is Natures Way!
The problem is not only GMO, but the fact that food production has become an industry. We totally lost our contact with the nature.
Zeitgeist move shows the horrors of meat industry:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6361872964130308142&ei=F9QHSpONMI-s2wKSm8SlDA&q=earthlings&hl=en
(you can watch the whole movie online)
and the film Our daily bread shows how food and meat production process. Here are some excerpts from the movie:
- http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4669008910244822062&ei=g9QHSpbCNJzi2wLrmJ3mDA&q=Our+daily+bread&hl=en
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzSq0AdvAbE
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_6eHcrhD44
- http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5127985590613548292&hl=en
- http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/Cekv4K7eOBs/
PCBs are dangerous. End of story. You have no argument there.
I think that organic farmers should sue bt farmers using Monsanto seeds for contamination if the Monsanto seeds blow into their fields. Organic foods are so important that we cannot afford to have Monsanto poisoning the last of our organic crops. Also, I think that Monsanto executives should experience the same fate as the Chinese executives who poisoned all those babies’ formula. Look at all the deaths from cancer, diabetes, hypertension, etc. that are on the increase since GM foods have been introduced tot he American diet.
Is this documentary movie subtitled/captioned for the deaf/hard-of-hearing?
If not, it should be. Thanks.
This particular chemical company has had a hand in some of the worst atrocities since the second world war. They go after and bankrupt the competition, or tie their hands with court cases.
Helene refers to the canadian seed farmer(direct competition) who’s family had been saving and trading seed for many years.
He did not plant their beans, they did. Big business, government, and the legal system all sleep in the same bed!!!!
Get ready for global enslavement under the corporate overlords.
FDA hires monsanto execs, monsanto hires FDA rejects. Conflicts of interests????? DUH!!!!
We need a herbicide that only kills roundup ready crops and corporate executives.
GM foods have some advantages over conventional plants, but the hidden disadvantages far out weigh the benefits. The people that allowed this to be done to us wont suffer for their decision, but our kids and grandkids will.
Melissa is right, the responsible parties should be strung up in the town square and left to dry up and blow away.
Monsanto are a prominent target, but they are not the only one, Merck, Bayer, Litton, Phizer,Union Carbide…. add in the world health organization and the International monetary fund. We are going to need a really big town square.
Seems like it was just one variety of maize, but I might be wrong.
Until we can hold the decision makers accountable in criminal court this is what we are going to get. Civil court only allows this to continue.
Thank God that the stuff thats in milk in the U.S was banned in Canada and the E.U, growth hormone was it ?? and thats for starters, how on earth can a corporation even get away with virtually poisoning people and even be “allowed” to take over the worlds food production ? it sure beats the crap outta me ..
and also cause suicides in Indial …wheres God when he / she is needed.. why of course he is a myth ..
As a vegetarian, I too am rather against GMO.
On one hand, Nobody knows for sure the GMO’s long term impact on human kind’s health. All we know is that we are taking a huge risk by dealing with the unknown.
On the other hand, GMO food can help curb famine. What do we want? Hundreds of thousands of people immediately dying of hunger or GMO food that feed all those hungry mouths?
Last but not least, did you know that 100% of sugar beet crops in North America turned GMO in 2009? This is an outrage to consumers who no longer have choice between GMO and GMO-free food (sweetened with sugar from beets). This is against democracy.
So although I am very wary about GMO food because of the unknown, I will never take an extreme stance because I think it has a purpose in specific matters such as feeding hunger and even making biofuels (provided original crops are preserved to feed population).
Have any of you fanatic dirt-worshipers ever done the math on how long it takes a
companyBig Evil Corporation™ to kill all of its customers before it becomes broke and ceases to exist? I didn’t think so.Can any of you point to one single death or illness caused by genetically modified food? Be specific. “Everybody knows” is not an answer.
And yet, a bunch of you are on here advocating the execution (even though you’re against the death penalty, right?) of anybody who doesn’t share your chemically induced, paranoid fantasies.
Spread the love,
(signed)
Mme. LeFarge
Mr. Hog Whitman (aka Mme. Lefarge),
If being called a dirt worshiper is a bad thing, then I guess I’m bad. But wait, I’ve also been called a Communist, a Marxist, Ilk, and a whole lot of things not mentionable for an all ages website.
That being said, if you take a look at the other comments in this article, you will find that you are in the minority of people who would even think of defending Monsanto. I must ask myself what you have to either gain by defending them or lose by admitting how unethical they are. How are you vetted in either your lifestyle or philosophy, that to declare what so many other have, would disadvantage you?
The other option is that just like most “flat earthers” and “Global Warming” deniers, you are either just misinformed or crazy.
Mme. LeFarge,
The execs at Monsanto or any other multi-national corporation don’t care what happens to the company after they retire, and the negative effects are so far in the future.
You’ve been called an “Ilk”? Wow, that must have been very painful for you.
Now eat some organic dirt cookies, wash it down with soy milk (I recommend the Monsanto brand — Now! With Extra Lethal Roundup!™ — don’t settle for less), and go back to sucking the resin out of your bong, dude.
P. S. Somebody called you an “Ilk”? I’m sorry, but I just had to repeat it. I mean, I still can’t believe how cruel people can be sometimes. Maybe you could get some ‘grief counseling’.
An eighth-grade education wouldn’t hurt, either.
My Dear Mister Hog…
There may be a few extreme points of view stated here but you are of them too. Plus you display a certain ignorance.
Let me quote you: “Can any of you point to one single death or illness caused by genetically modified food?“.
First, you are out of topic. That’s not the problem being discussed. The LONG TERM effect of GMO on the human body and on soil is what’s being discussed. And nobody knows it yet.
Second, your question makes as little sense as if we had asked decades ago “Can any of you point to one single death or illness caused by smoking/junk food?“. Back then, nobody knew the exact long term effect of cigarettes or of eating junk food at Mc Do every day. Only, today we die of cancer for smoking or eating hamburgers everyday.
We didn’t know well because the then science could not tell.
Today’s science cannot tell whether GMO is safe or not in the long run.
So I don’t care about the ignorant who don’t mind GMO. But people who care should fight hard so there is always a choice at least between GMO and GMO-free food and so that GMO food (cheaper to produce) does not take over GMO-free food.
Hog Whitman, That is precisely the point, the risks are unknown, gmo’s haven’t been in existence long enough to know the long term effects they can cause and yet because of successful lobbying (pressure tactics and bribes) consumers don’t even get to choose whether or not they want to be guinea pigs for this experiment – and this in a country that pride itself in ensuring freedom for all.
There really is no sound reason for not requiring mandatory labeling of all foods containing gmo’s. Not only does the government not require this but there have even been cases where dairy companies are not allowed to include on their label that their cows WEREN’T given rBGH
As far as studies go, more and more they are pointing to risks in the use of gmo’s both to the environment and to humans : http://www.psrast.org/intro1.htm , http://www.bmgfj.gv.at/ , (English version) http://www.responsibletechnology.org/GMFree/MediaCenter/ReleaseAustrianGovernmentStudy/index.cfm , http://www.biotech-weblog.com/50226711/genetically_modified_soy_in_russia.php
Yes I realize that it can be difficult to trust scientific studies (in general) as they can and have been manipulated to support certain positions. The mere fact that concerns have been raised however should be enough to at least require labeling so consumers can opt out of this experiment if they choose. I’m perfectly fine if you have no problems being involuntarily signed up for this experiment but the point is people should have the right to choose.
I can give Mondanto the benefit of the doubt to a certain point and take the assumption that their motives in developing GMO’s were a combination of profit and improving agriculture in order to address concerns of a potential looming food shortage. The desire to eliminate the risks posed to crops such as insects and weeds and improve efficiency in and of itself is not a bad thing. And if we want to take this benefit of the doubt even further we can then assume that company officials are so blinded by this ideal of improving the world’s agricultural crops they are unable to see any potential harm and/or that they believe that any concerns with GMO’s are overblown and as such feel completely justified in pushing their agenda through at any cost using any methods or tactics.
This is however a best case scenario and does not justify the tactics they have used. It is these tactics that give rise to the concerns raised by many and that lead many to believe the company’s motives are much more profit driven than altruistic. These include an apparent desire to control the food supply by patenting seeds both GMO and non GMO (patenting of any kind of life form is a very dangerous precedent and the US government is to blame here also), banning farmers from saving seeds (so much for altruistic motives especially in Africa), bribing Health Canada officials to allow rBGH when their studies found it to be unsafe, and various bullying techniques including suing farmers after Monsanto’s seeds blew onto their fields, encouraging farmers to become informants about their neighbors (when it comes to saving seeds) ….
The point remains are you really comfortable with the future of the food supply in the hands of a for profit corporation? Read up a little on the importance of seed biodiversity and a free seed supply and you might just change your opinion
Here’s a latest report made by Friends of the Earth
“Who benefits from gm crops?”
http://www.foeeurope.org/GMOs/reports_publications.html
Gee, Mr. Whitman, what’s your deal? How, pray tell, is treating the earth in a kindly manner a bad thing. I don’t know where your food grows, but here on our farm it all grows in dirt. Last year we installed a 7 KW solar system that makes more electricity than we use on this 300 acre farm with 9,000 square feet of out-buildings. We do not spray anything made by monsanto or any other chemical company. Organic works when you do it right. Read the book “Small is Beautiful” . . . It’s an oldie but it still has a lot to say for those who want to learn, whatever one’s educational level is. Just give a damn about the planet and those of us who live here. I know that it might be hard to believe, but there are corporations whose actions are harmful
to folks despite what they may claim or profess. Anyone heard of Wall Street lately? AIG? Credit default swaps?? And on and on.
No, I don’t wish anyone harm, even the folk I don’t find helpful. Just do things that don’t harm the planet as you make your way along whatever path you have chosen.
Opps, I thought the first one got eaten by my computer . . . . maybe some Roundup made it disappear for a time!
It would stop them in their tracks if they thought they couldn’t make money on it. We need to globally outlaw the patenting of biological organisms.
I am always amazed at how we only look at the negatives…if we were to live our lives as many would like us to in today’s world…most of us would be dead by the age of 40….we would have never purified water, typed blood, developed 99% of the chemo drugs that are used and save lives today…we always go after major companies as if they are the evil empire. This is not to say that they are lily white and pure…they need and should be prosecuted for their sins; however they also need to be praised for what they also gave us. One example, Safe flex…it is that thin film in your car windows that keeps it from shattering when you hit it in an accident…well people Monsanto was the company which developed that.
In today’s world most if not all of the vaccines used today which have eradicated some of the worst diseases know to man would never have been invented or used.
A classic example of our over reaction based on emotional science is DDT…I believe it was Rachael Carson and her book Silent Spring which resulted in the banning of this pesticide world wide back in the early 70’s….even our own EPA scientist told the director at the time that the data was not valid, that the risk being promulgated was unsupportable…almost 40 years later and over 30 million people have died because of its banning…so who pays for their lives which have been lost…there was never a new chemical developed which was as effective as DDT for the killing of the common mosquito. Africa had to petition the World health Organization for permission to start using it again…they finally got the approval last year. Another government run example…MTB in your gas which was suppose to promote cleaner exhaust…well it did it but at a price…the fumes from you exhaust now polluted our fresh water systems… lakes and wells. The government never paid anyone for what they did. Times Beach just south and west of St. Louis, EPA came in and condemned the town for PCB contamination…moved everyone out…two years later they tell us the data was flawed…no the soil was not that bad…problem is, everyone is gone.
People I am sorry but time marches on…we do not live in log cabins without heating and air-conditioning anymore, thank god we do not take covered wagons or the stagecoach to get to the east coast any more. There are risk from being alive…I for one believe that it is better than the alternative.
Obama Appointed Monsanto’s Buddy, Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, for USDA
United States Head of the Department of Agriculture
“Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack’s support of genetically engineered pharmaceutical crops, especially pharmaceutical corn
When Vilsack created the Iowa Values Fund, his first poster child of economic development potential was Trans Ova and their pursuit of cloning dairy cows.
The biggest biotechnology industry group, the Biotechnology Industry Organization, named Vilsack Governor of the Year. He was also the founder and former chair of the Governor’s Biotechnology Partnership.
Vilsack has a glowing reputation as being a schill for agribusiness biotech giants like Monsanto. ”
info from http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_15573.cfm
Dont be a SUCKER watch The Obama Deception
WAKE UP
How do I get this DVD?? I have dial-up.
How do I get the DVD of “The World According to Monsanto” ?
Try Amazon.com
Serously guys, what can we do to stop them? Should I start working for FDA to try to change things there? Should I start working for Greenpeace? I am willing to change my career, I just an advise, I have two little children, this is crazy.
You can work for the Beast but you cannot ever change the Beast or its nature. FDA is simply too powerful for you to change from within. Too many wink-wink sweetheart-dealing corporate people from various food and pharma companies all over have too much controls over FDA, all hush-hush stuff. You pathetic little people are nothing to FDA but inconvenient complainers and a nuisance to the good order of Monsanto.
It sucks, huh?
This is complete “bullshit” The Laws past by Clarence Thomas regarding Monsanto and seeds genetically modified considered as pattenable intellectual property is not inforcable. Every time Monsanto tries to stong arm farmers… the courts must through out the case. These cases can not even be legally and morally heard… based on conflicts of interest. These laws should not have to be repealed… they should simply be regarded null and void.
Who gave Clarence Thomas the power to pass such laws or to make any decisions regarding such things? He knows as a Monsanto Agent he of all people had no right or power to do so. Least of all people… let alone any court Judge. They have usurpt authority and power. Need to be found guilty of contempt of humanity and greedy as hell. Pure evil.
Food and seeds that were here and simply modified…. are still essentially seeds which can only belong to all of mankind. Food being needed for survival can not be controlled by one greedy company.
Any court that would listen to these bullshit cases need to be shut down… any of the lawyers and judges that would be involved in such cases need to be disbared and perhaps inprisoned. They have shown themselves to be completely evil. It is monsanto who has been incrouching their perverted corrupted seeds upon the farmers who have planted natural seeds created by God. Monsanto needs to be sued… Their seed corrupts all others.
Monsanto has lost in the world courts of all peoples. No other court has any legitamate authority to hear and decide on this bullshit. Monsanto has lost in God’s court.
Most likely Monsanto has recieved huge grants from the Government to come up with their discoveries anyway. Therefore the taxpayers own their discoveries. Even if they were any good. These are all criminals… including the judges and lawyers who put up with this bullshit.
Wrong dear Rob.
We the people are the consumers making the purchase. So we ultimately make the decision to approve or unmercifully disapprove food in the market.
By buying organics, kosher, halal foods, I give clear signals to the market that I don’t want GMOs. If everybody made the effort to buy such food, then there would be no market for junks.
Now, what’s pathetic is to hear most American consumers pretending they can’t afford organic food yet they can afford their iphone and Ray-ban sunglasses and medical bills.
Fred, people don’t buy iPods/iPhones or Ray-ban sunglasses every week like we buy groceries every week. Have you buy an iPod, consume and discard it within a week, then buy a new iPod, keep doing it every week? Do you buy a Ray-ban sunglasses every week, too? Did you get hurt and go to a hospital every week and get billed weekly for it? These are not edible, you know.
Most organic foods are too expensive for most people to buy on a daily or weekly basis. Maybe not so expensive for you if you are well-off but low-income people cannot afford them on a weekly or monthly basis. Get real.
If you wanted people to be empowered to buy certain foods of their own choice, let them. We make purchases based on our personal choices or likings, not subjective to your personal gripes about the evils of the junk food and fast-food industries. What we need is to prod these industries to change its usual practices in producing these edible goods without sacrificing quality and tastes in the process.
I heard that Apple is working on an edible iPhone for only $4.99 a pound. Did you know that Ray-ban is experimenting with a chewable sunglasses for $10.99 a piece?
Dear Rob…
Don’t compare ONE iphone with ONE organic apple please as one can buy one month of the other.
You didn’t make any calculation but if you added up all the not-so necessary spending (iphone again *$75 a month!*, ipod, Ray-ban again, branded sports shoes, Sean John apparels AND medical bills due to illness induced by bad diet: pizza, frozen meals, meat, cheddar, etc, etc…) it would amount to a very nice budget that can be allocated to healthier [organic] food. It’s up to the consumer to replace some fancy spending with critical ones.
Organic bananas are 99 cts a lb. whereas conventional ones are 79 cts. Who cant afford?? Give me a break.
Fighting big food corps while still buying from them is ridiculous and will never succeed. A majority of consumers must make the move, not only the organic eaters or vegetarians like me.
Fred, you forget that the majority of consumers have the choices in picking out what they wanted or eat, you do not get to decide what choices they should get or eat.
All major retailers display a “healthy” corner where one can buy veggies and fruits. The choice is already EVERYWHERE. Consumers don’t need to voice for more choice, it’s there already! However, consumers are too lazy, they buy potato chips and pizzas instead of walking down more aisles and take time to prepare nice healthy meals at home. Consumers make the market, not manufacturers. McDo in France used to display a menu that was way different from that of the US because French consumers gave clear signals to the market about their taste and preference (since then, US McDo have moved closer to the French menu with salads and all…).
It is hopeless for vegetarians like me to fight large corps while the majority of consumers still implicitly approve them by buying their junks.
The market rules. Not their suppliers.
Fred:
Sorry to tell you, but the market does not rule. The TOP DOGS rules, those that make the decisions on what to allow on the market shelves.
You are correct about one thing. People are lazy, and they get lazier by the day. But if thats the case then tell me this:
How can a woman (im a guy, so im not saying this cause of a gender preference) sit home and make dinner/lunch/whatever for her and her kids when she has a job (sometimes 2 jobs), kids activities, laundry, cleaning, reading for the kids, etc etc etc?
Many people just dont have a choice, really.
Then again those that do have a choice, I call them LAZY.
Consumers do not make the market. Let me explain:
When you control the type of product thats available, then people will not have other choices.
When you pay people very little, so that you can control their habits, then you have no choice.
When corporations pay off the TOP DOGS, then you have no choice.
When majority of the foods on the market are GMO, then you have no choice.
Your McDo story is great, but you forgot one thing. All the new items on the menu (US or France) are still GMO grown, therefore your statement holds on water. Sorry to tell you, but when you compare GMO foods with other GMO foods, then its no longer a comparison. Its the same type of food.
Now, if McDo had a menu where its all organic food based, then YES, I would agree with your statement, but we both know, their entire menu is full of GMO foods.
Actually come to think of it, I never seen any restaurant that uses Organic Foods. Some country side restaurant from Moms and Pops perhaps, but thats about it….
Everyone has a choice. Thats what its all about. Choice. Some people can afford to eat organic food, some have no choice but to buy crappy food.
To compare organic bananas at 99c VS regular at 79c is not a comparison by far. What your comparison should be is what is actually needed on a daily basis for each person. The difference in price is sometimes twice as much. Just looked at some chicken for example.
Chicken
$16 for 8 pack regular.
$34 for 8 pack Organic.
Tomatoes
$99c a pound
$2.99 a pound Organic
etc
etc
See the difference?
While some people can afford it, some cant.
While these companies may do some wrong, they also do some right too. If these companies were not around, you think that we would be able to support the 6.5B people we have on this planet?
Hmm, maybe, maybe not. Are you willing to support that evidence by taking out these companies and let people die of hunger?
Well, maybe you are, but not me…
Everyone supports themselves with what they can. With that said, if a person has the ability to buy organic, by all means, go for it. If not, then you have a choice (besides death of starvation)…
There is no right or wrong here. Its what each individual chooses, but at least we have choices. I would rather have a choice then none at all.
That’s why many low-income people cannot afford to choose or buy organic foods. My closest major grocery store has an organic food section and most of the shoppers there are low-income individuals, families and/or single mothers with children. Every other time I shop there, I do not ever seen them hang around and buy organic goods from that section as often as people shop in a stronger number at Trader Joe’s few miles away. They’re not into them because the items are priced beyond their means on a weekly or monthly basis. They goes for the stuff they can afford: the cheap foods, junk foods, regular meats, processed foods and so on.
When companies don’t pay them enough in their jobs, they cannot afford organic foods on a weekly/monthly basis, whether they have a choice or not.
Hi Chris, If we get back to the idea of GMOs (as opposed to organic) then we have NO CHOICE and that’s the whole point. thanks to successful lobbying by Monsanto, governments in North America UNLIKE many overseas, don’t require manufacturers to label when their products contain genetically modified ingredients. So for those who can’t afford organic, which is the only way to ensure you aren’t consuming GMO’s, they have no choice but to be test subjects in this GMO experiment. This at a time when more research findings are starting to appear that point to negative health effects from GMO’s .
What makes you believe that the use of Monsanto’s herbicides/ GMO seeds is the reason we’ve been able to support the planet’s 6.2 billion population? There are many in developing who believe that solutions to a food shortage must be grass roots and don’t believe Monsanto’s products are required. In fact Monsanto’s promotion of monoculture destroys farmland. If this company’s motives were so altruistic, why does it forbid farmers from saving seeds, something farmers have always done?
oh and are you really comfortable trusting Monsanto, the company involved with agent orange, with food security?
Hi Helen.
I dont agree with what Monsanto is doing, not by far. I actually agree with your statement, that most GMO foods are not the answer, BUT:
At this moment, the politicians and wealthy men/women make the rules. Its quite hard and difficult to make a major change such as this without enough support from the TOP DOGS. As you know and many others, TOP DOGS will not make any change that will lessen their bank accounts.
These guys get paid to support this crap, and when we vote for crappy politicians, we get crappy decisions.
Can we do something about it? Maybe…
Can we do without these GMO foods? Maybe…
Do these seeds destroy farm land? Hell yeah…
Can we make a change? Perhaps, but not likely…
I dont want to sound negative, but the bottom line is still $$$. When you pay off (you know who), then you will get this crap.
Remember, these politicians dont have to put up with crappy foods. They make enough money to support their family with good organic healthy foods, so what do they care if some company comes along and provides GMO foods to the public?
My earlier point was, at least we have these options, organic or not-organic. Many other countries cant feed themselves. I am not rich, and so I buy non-organic food. if it werent for it, would I be able to sustain my hunger? Maybe, but thats a very far MAYBE…
I prefer choices, then none at all. Again thats my opinion.
I believe many people know about these genetically engineered foods, but not much they can do about it. We cant go around and feed 6.2B people with organic foods, just not possible. Thats where other laws, such as population control should come in place, but thats a whole other story, lol…
What makes me believe that these GMO foods are the reason we can support 6.2B people?
Simple. We just cant make enough organic foods to support that much population. I can be wrong here, but the way people eat (specially here in US) is amazing.
Do I want these GMO foods? If nothing else is available, then YES.
Do I support these bastards? Hell no, but no other choice.
Can we fight them? Well thats a darn good question…
I can see a lot of non sense amongst the above comments. I feel the urgent need to correct a few things in order not to scare the uninformed reader.
Currently, the organic consumers like me are a very small minority in the US. Based on your comments above, the huge majority of Americans are so poor that they can’t afford organics which would be why organics do not sell… What a bleak picture. It is of course not the case. America is not Africa, America is a rich country no matter what, at least 25% of the population can afford organic. We now are very far from it because US consumers are lazy, uneducated about healthy foods and therefore don’t care about organics (or healthy food) because they put higher priority on other family spending (smart-phones, SUVs, large house, branded clothing, flat screen TVs and other entertainment, plus medical bills for those (overweight, diabetics… who are sick from eating junks). Indeed, there are many low income households in the US but they don’t represent 75% of the population!! I reiterate that Americans can afford organics, provided they accept to make some effort towards their diet, just like Europeans do.
Now that being said, I’m surprised the discussion started with the very limitative concept of choice only between organics and GMOs. That’s utterly wrong. Conventional produces are not necessarily GMOs. So while I maintain that we do have choice, I actually firmly confirm to our readers that we have quite a nice choice of healthy stuff. So, unlike stated further above, the problem is not choice (in the produce department), while, granted, there may be a critical choice issue in the processed food market since most processed foods contain GM ingredients.
Finally, I invite the readers not to take seriously Chris’s erroneous statements. I evidenced with the McDo example that the market does rule (difference in offering between US and France comes from the difference in consumers’ needs and taste, whether supply is GM or not). I can give tons of other evidences across Europe and even Japan illustrating the power / control of consumers over the market (food coloring, polysorbate ban, GMO ban…). Consumers made it possible there, we should make it possible here in the US. Guess what??! Mighty Coca Cola could not even put his corn syrup crap in the Mexican version of his soda, despite all the trade agreements and other ALENA deals which are supposed to force countries to harmonize food rules. The ‘top dogs’ rule only when and where consumers are so stupid, weak, lazy and uneducated that they cant voice their needs to defend themselves.
Conclusion: Yes Americans can afford healthy food (a mix of organics and conventional non GM produce does not hurt). Yes Americans have a choice, they just need to be aware, more curious, better educated and less lazy. Yes Americans can give clear signals to the market, just as much as European and Japanese consumers did and keep doing to their respective market, but to do so Americans need to wake up!! Fighting the ‘big dogs’ while the vast majority of unaware consumers are still eating junks is useless. There are the same big dogs in Europe believe me or not (I’m European) but they don’t rule the consumers… yet…
Side note: I support GMO in 2 cases: to make biofuels NOT by replacing conventional crops with GM ones but by adding new quarantined crops ; and to feed the world’s poorest (eating GMOs is better than dying of hunger). That’s why we can’t blindly fight Monsanto because it’s not all black or white.
Fred, that first line of your post seem to suggest you’re trying to be a condescending jackass. The rest of your post just proved that you are really a condescending jackass.
Fred:
Your statement has some truth into it. Apparently you didnt read mine properly.
As I stated earlier, there are some lazy people out there that would prefer to eat crappy foods. I never said otherwise. So your comment is quite the same as mine, just worded differently.
Second, I stated above, people do have a choice. Some make the right choice, some dont.
But you forget one thing, which i’ll say it again:
Many dont have those choices you described. There are more single parents in this country then every before. Many dont have the time to sit and cook their foods, therefore buying processed foods.
There are many that just cant afford it. No, this is not Africa, you are correct on that point, but America is NOT as rich as you think.
Many live off of Credit Cards.
Many live paycheck to paycheck.
Many have 2 jobs to support themselves (therefore little time for cooking).
Many have jobs and still go to school.
Time is everything. When one does not have that luxury, they must take a different approach.
Your conclusion is the same as mine. CHOICE…
But thats not always available. I for one, WAS part of that choice, when I had to have 2 jobs and school, and could not even step into a market, therefore eating crappy foods. Only when you go thru this you will understand what it means to HAVE A CHOICE.
Scuze, but you cant compare Europeans (which is what I am) with Americans. 2 totally different lifestyles…
I support GMOs because of CHOICE. I dont agree with how they go about it, but its better to have a choice then none.
Could the American Society be educated more? Yes. I agree with you. Will it happen? Not likely…
The “big dogs” do rule the market. They are the ones that make the rules, therefore, limiting your choices…
If this was not true, how come we still run on darn Gasoline? When there are dozens of other technologies out there. Its cause of the “big dogs”
As you stated above, they dont rule Europeans “YET”. Wait for a while longer…
Again, I dont disagree with what you say, but an open mind calls for more understanding. Only when you go thru these CHOICES you will see reality, and sorry to tell you, but the reality of it is, majority are not rich as you describe.
You are generalizing my dear Chris. Your situation is not the situation of 100% of Americans (60-70% worst case scenario). The gourmet market is worth billions. This means there are people (20-25% of the US population) who spend money on expensive foods. They obviously don’t spend enough on organics otherwise the org market would be worth more. I don’t disagree with your stats only if applied to a portion of the population only. Not 100% are affected by the credit crunch and other economic/financial woes (although these are recent yet the trend on food has been there for quite some time). The gourmet market has not died. Hectic work schedules are everywhere Chris, not an American specificity. Go to Japan, they work hard yet they are healthier than us.
If 20% of the population (who CAN afford organics) did switch to organics or conventional produces and if some 10 to 15% of the remaining population turned to cheaper (they can afford it), yet healthy conventional produces (not necessarily GM), we’d have a good third of the US population giving a huge signal to the market about what to make/grow and supply. This is how it works everywhere else, regardless of lifestyle. What does lifestyle has to do to explain some lack of financial means?! Maybe Americans should look up to the Europeans’ diet and, granted, copy their general lifestyle, they’d be happier, healthier, less obese, etc…
There are fundamental market mechanisms you are ignoring and, worse, you are trying to reinvent the definition of market! You are making false general assumptions about the big dogs and about consumers. Those big dogs are everywhere on the planet but not with the same grasp on the market. So what’s possible in Europe is possible in the US. Want a clear example which will also proves that Americans CAN be more educated unlike what you assume and that big dogs don’t always have a say? Dark chocolate. Hershey’s was in a quasi monopolistic position years ago with crappy milk chocolate (over sweet, over junks…). Guess what, today healthy dark chocolate (European style chocolate) is taking over, consumers have showed curiosity, interest, they have researched, read articles and more articles as everybody praised dark choco benefits. Americans have been educated big time, they learned and know that dark choco is a source of anti-oxidants. Your big dogs did nothing. They could not. Hershey’s closed its online operation this month.
The growing gourmet market, albeit slow, shows you that Americans are learning, albeit slowly, and that if they WANT IT, they can afford it.
Chris, you have the choice: buy conventional produces, not all are GM and they are fairly priced but stop scaring consumers with unfunded market assumptions.
WELL SAID FRED, COULD NOT HAVE SAID IT BETTER!
Excellent documentary!! I remember watching similar documentaries like Supermarket Secrets, The Future of Food etc. You can search for them at several documentary collection websites like http://www.documentary-log.com/
Just search google and you’ll find lots more.
Great news! Federal Judge rules against Monsanto’s GM sugar beets, mentioning USDA failures. Read http://twitter.com/fredkzk/status/4320223934 or http://bit.ly/9KD6v
I would like to get a copy of the documentary of The World According to Monsanto. Please tell me how!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thank You
Duane
Duane, try amazon dot com
As a new product development engineer, I offered my assistance to bring to the market a patented herbicide. The inventor [Ph.D., Chemistry] retired from the U.S. Dpet of Agri and the E.P.A. His product would make RoundUp and Weed-b-gone, obsolete. In a five-year test it eradicated bamboo and blackberry vines. The product is friendly to the environment. RoundUp can not pass either of these tests.In the world maket of $11 billion, we found no firm [even my contacts in China] willing to produce and market the product for fear of Montsano! So much for developing a ‘better mouse trap’. It’s called the Not Invented Here Syndrome
Don,
I have a hard time to believe that all firms around the world are scared by Monsanto. Nobody cares about Monsanto here in Europe. If your product is truly what you claim it is, then contact a few European private equity firms specialised in the food industry. They have deep pockets and will introduce you to large players which can manufacture for you and which are not afraid of Monsanto.
I wish you all the best with your innovation.
I hate that roundup crap.Glyphosate is fouling crop fields to the point where they may never grow healthy crops again without costly remediation.I saw a display of roundup at a local hardware store.I was disgusted at the site of it.A man approached me at the display and asked “hey,is this stuff any good?” I didnt say yes or no,but proceeded to tell him what the product was and who made it and their corporate record.By the time I finished,he was as disgusted as I was and couldnt believe that the same company who made this seemingly benign garden product for the home was also responsible for wrecking the food supply and causing indian farmers to commit suicide.
Hi Ben. Isn’t it great when you don’t have to sprinkle a statement with opinion, to initiate change? It sounds that by just telling the facts, we have one more person out there who knows about the unethical and downright evil practices of Monsanto.
Thanks for the comment, and good on ya!
Adam
Thanks adam.I tell you,the more I read about monsanto and their agenda,the more hopeless and unstoppable it seems.But with worldwide opposition growing by leaps and bounds,maybe there is a chance.As an american,I am truly ashamed that an american-based company has wreaked such havoc around the world.