Monsanto rethinks its business priorities in Europe
Biotechnology company Monsanto has decided to withdraw all its applications for GM crop cultivation in Europe except for GM maize MON 810. The firm will focus on its lucrative conventional seed business instead.
In a statement, Monsanto explained that “the EU today is effectively a conventional seed market and [the firm] has been progressively de-emphasising cultivation of biotech crops [in the region].
Europe has “not approved a major new biotech product for cultivation since 1998, and currently has suspended the progression of cultivation files towards decisions for political reasons”, the statement continues. A spokesman in the UK also added that the application process was very expensive.
The firm will withdraw applications for the cultivation of six varieties of GM corn, one variety of soybean and one GM sugarbeet. But it will seek to renew authorisation of MON 810, which is grown in a few member states. It will also continue to apply for EU import approvals of its varieties grown in other parts of the world.
German chemical company BASF made a similar announcement last year, saying it was abandoning plans to develop and commercialise GM crops in Europe – including Amflora potatoes – because of “lack of acceptance”.
http://www.endseurope.com/27959?referrer=bulletin&DCMP=EMC-ENDS-EUROPE-DAILY
Monsanto plans to invest several hundred million dollars in the development of conventional seeds in Europe by 2020, including $300m in corn production in countries such as France, Hungary, Romania and Turkey.
“We have been growing in Europe for the past three years on the strength of our conventional portfolio”, according to its statement.
The company says it is also launching new Roundup products for farmers and lawn and gardens. Roundup contains the controversial herbicide glyphosate that is widely used across the EU, particularly in countries such as Denmark.
http://www.endseurope.com/26631?referrer=bulletin&DCMP=EMC-ENDS-EUROPE-DAILY
http://www.endseurope.com/29977?referrer=bulletin&DCMP=EMC-ENDS-EUROPE-DAILY
Follow Up:
Monsanto website. See also video of EC briefing on the announcement and update on GM proposal blocked in the Council of Ministers (in French)
http://www.monsanto.com/global/uk/Pages/default.aspx
http://ec.europa.eu/avservices/video/player.cfm?ref=I080880
Pete Riley of GM Freeze said: “It has taken a long time for the penny to drop that trying to force failing GM technology onto an unwilling market it is simply not good business, and we hope other companies will follow suit – but EU GM imports are still a problem.”
Yes, now they will focus on buying out EU seed suppliers like they did in the UK to dominate the market while sneaking in contaminated seeds so that in the future should there be opposition to GMO in EU they will say that GMO is there already and no problems cropped up.