Week #3 – Are big companies forcing farmers to grow GMOs?
Top Consumer Questions about GMOs
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For this question, we reached out to Brian Scott, an Indiana farmer who grows corn and soybeans, to talk about his experience purchasing seed for his farm. He explains that "none of the seed companies force farmers like me to buy any particular product…I can buy any seed from any vendor I choose from one year to the next."
In another response, available here, Brian goes on to say that "each farmer should have the freedom to farm how he or she chooses."
Jillian Etress, a high school agriculture teacher and family farmer from South Alabama, also offers her perspective in this post, where she explains that on her farm, they “choose to use or not use GMOs based on the needs of our farm.”
We couldn't agree more. GMO Answers respects farmers' right to choose seeds based on what is best for their farms, market demand and local growing environments. In fact, it is one of our five core principles—available here.
Looking for more information related to this issue? Try these:
- Many farmers have chosen to avoid planting the GMO seeds, for whatever reason, and aren't given the choice to extract them once the seeds have infiltrated into their crops.
Answered by Greg Wandrey: http://gmoanswers.com/ask/many-farmers-have-chosen-avoid-planting-gmo-seeds-whatever-reason-and-arent-given-choice-extract - I have read that Monsanto has sued farmers whose fields have exhibited evidence of having Monsanto seeds mixed in with an otherwise non-GMO crop, and this has occurred due to the natural tendency of plants to cross pollinate, leaving the farmers no choice but not to grow corn or soy, assuming that they haven't been run out of business by Monsanto's threats.
Answered by Kelly Clauss: http://gmoanswers.com/ask/i-have-read-monsanto-has-sued-farmers-whose-fields-have-exhibited-evidence-having-monsanto-seeds - From all the corporations combined including Monsanto how many law suits has there been on rural farmers? What exactly is the most common reason for the litigation?
Answered by André Roef: http://gmoanswers.com/ask/all-corporations-combined-including-monsanto-how-many-law-suits-has-there-been-rural-farmers - · …Do you support farmer's private property rights, and if so, how do you propose containing GM pollen?
Answered by Jennifer Spurgat: http://gmoanswers.com/ask/maine-farmer-jim-gerritsen-said-if-i-decided-spray-my-house-purple-and-i-sprayed-day-was-windy