I am Going to Monsanto

I am about to open up another chapter in the adventure that has been afforded me by the Illinois Farm Families Program. I am about to head over onto “enemy” lines.  

 I am going to Monsanto.

Just say Monsanto out loud and people will give you a thousand different options for how awful they are and must be. I have read the Facebook articles and the passed along information and been convinced that something is amiss. One of the reasons I wanted to join the program was to hear the other side of the story – to get to know the people using the seeds and see what their opinion was.

I met some Farmers last year, all of whom, if they grew corn or soy, were growing some GMO crops. Some of them bought from Monsanto. As I recall all of us moms in the program, I think about 25 of us, were sort of horrified. What came out of it for me is this – who are we to judge?

Now, don’t get all excited. I am not saying that I am pro-GMO, pro-Monsanto etc. But I do think that Neil deGrasse Tyson is tons smarter than me and HE is not worried about them.  Here is a sample of what he had to say on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/neildegrassetyson/posts/10152652892786613

For thousands of years Farmers have been modifying plants and animals through breeding choices. Today, the pigs in the gestation stalls could not survive in the wild. You will not find a wild seedless watermelon. For thousands of years human beings have sacrificed biodiversity on the altar of quantity. Now, because we are doing it in a lab, we are paying attention.

First – we’ve been doing it in a lab for something like 30 years. The crops have been in our fields for 20 years.

Second – I don’t believe the problem is in the modification. I am not a scientist. I am just a mom, a writer, a Girl Scout leader.


But what I think the problem is and what I think in my own humble opinion is the following:

1. What are we doing about cross-pollination with other crops?
2. What are we doing about allergies?
3.  Why aren’t we labeling – and not just that the food is GMO but with information available by the food’s code on what has been modified and why.
4. Why aren’t we letting farmers keep seed?
5.  How long do patents last? Can they expire like copyrights and the food is returned to the public domain? 

These are my top concerns and what I will be taking with me to Monsanto. Hopefully, I will get some clarification and answers.  I am open to discovering that the hype I hear is wrong. I am also wary that I am just hearing the other side of the coin and that somewhere in the middle we can find the truth.  

Wish me luck.