---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 21 Oct 1998 08:09:12 -0700 From: mckeever <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: More on Terminator >From Bridges Weekly Trade Monitor: In related news, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Delta Pine Land Company (soon to be a subsidiary of Monsanto) are pursuing the international marketing of its Terminator Technology. Terminator Technology renders seeds sterile after one planting. This could end the historic practice among farmers of saving seeds for subsequent year's planting. Opponents to the technology argue it is inconsistent with Monsanto's claim that its biotechnology is the answer to world food problems. According to a scientist working on the Terminator Technology initiative with the USDA, "Our main interest is protection of American technology. Our mission is to protect U.S. agriculture, and to make us competitive in the face of foreign competition. Without this, there is no way of protecting the technology [patented seed]." In August, India announced it would ban imported seeds containing the Terminator gene because of the potential harm to Indian agriculture. In May, the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity recommended that the precautionary principle be applied to the Terminator technology. The Conference also directed its scientific body to examine the technology's impact on farmers and biodiversity. "Global warming endangers arctic;" "Strong calls for mobilisation of science and technology," IPS, October 15, 1998; "Bio-pollution sweeps across planet," IPS, October 12, 1998; "Biotech firms have their eyes on Africa," IPS, October 16, 1998; "World Bank praises green revolution," IPS, October 5, 1998; "Main points of Development Committee statement," AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, October 5, 1998; "Genetic polluters escape scot free Government Shambles Means Offenders Escape Prosecution," FRIENDS OF THE EARTH PRESS RELEASE, October 16, 1998. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest is published by the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development and edited by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. Excerpts from BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest© may be used in other publications with appropriate citation. Comments and suggestions are welcome and should be directed to: Ricardo Melendez-Ortiz: http://www.ictsd.org/html/mailbox.htm, Executive Director, ICTSD, Geneva Executive Center, 13 chemin des Anemones, 1219 Chatelaine, Geneva, Switzerland; email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; voice: (41-22) 979-9492; fax: (41- 22) 979-9093. To subscribe send email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Leave the subject line blank. In the body of the message type: subscribe tradedev BRIDGES Weekly Trade News Digest© can be found at the following web pages: http://www.newsbulletin.org and http://www.ictsd.org - please note however that the latter web site is currently undergoing revision and is not being regularly updated. Regular daily updates will resume early in November. ------------------------------------------------------------------------
