Science Society Sustainability
http://www.i-sis.org.uk
ISIS Press Release 03/05/05
India's Bt Cotton Fraud
Monsanto rides roughshod over Indian cotton farmers leaving a wake of
false claims and doctored information, despite being fined for
bribery in Indonesia <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>Rhea Gala
The <http://www.i-sis.org.uk/full/IBTCFFull.php>sources for this
article are posted on ISIS members' website.
<http://www.i-sis.org.uk/membership.php>Details here
As the battle for control over cotton farming in India intensifies,
Monsanto's tactics to extend approval for its Bollgard Bt cotton call
to mind those for which it was recently fined US$1.5m for bribery and
corruption in Indonesia.
In advance of a deadline for a decision on licence renewal in March
2005, Greenpeace and the Sarvodaya Youth Organization released two
versions of a report on Bt cotton prepared by the Joint Director of
Agriculture of Warangal District, Andhra Pradesh (AP). The data in
the original report, commissioned under a memorandum of understanding
between the AP government and Monsanto- Mahyco, revealed a
comprehensive failure of Bt cotton in AP. The second visibly
tampered-with version exaggerated the yields, thereby substantially
reducing Monsanto's compensation to farmers. State agricultural
committees have consistently demanded compensation to be paid to
farmers for losses at a rate of Rs.20 000 (US$458.5) per acre, but
Monsanto has refused to pay up so far.
Greenpeace campaigner Divya Raghunandan said, "We are disappointed by
the government's decision to expand the region under Bt cotton, while
the need was to stop where it was already grown·The fact that data
has been so clearly manipulated in this case, raises serious doubts
about the authenticity of any data that the Genetic Engineering
Advisory Committee (GEAC) would use to review Bt cotton."
Market research: wishful thinking, or science?
Monsanto commissioned a study using a market research agency for the
2004 season, which claimed that Bt cotton yield was up by 58% on a
country wide basis, resulting in a 60% increase in farmers' incomes;
and that in Andhra Pradesh, a 46% yield increase and a 65% reduction
in pesticide costs gave a 42% increase in income to farmers.
A notorious piece of research by Martin Qaim (University of Bonn) and
David Zilberman (University of California, Berkeley) was published in
Science, claiming outstanding (80%!) yield increases from Monsanto's
GM cotton; and projected the results as relevant to farmers
throughout the developing world. The paper drew a storm of protest,
as it derived all its data from Monsanto and its findings were
completely at odds with the reports coming from Indian farmers. Dr
Devinder Sharma, a food policy expert, called Qaim and Zilberman's
paper a "scientific fairytale".
Agricultural scientists Dr Abdul Qayum and Kiran Sakkhari conducted
an independent study on Bt cotton on a season-long basis for three
years in 87 villages of the major cotton growing districts of AP -
Warangal, Nalgonda, Adilabad and Kurnool - and found against Bt
cotton on all counts:
Bollgard failed miserably for small farmers in terms of yields;
non-Bt cotton surpassed Bt in yield by nearly 30% with 10% less
expense Bollgard did not significantly reduce pesticide use; over the
three years, Bt farmers spent Rs. 2571 on pesticides on average,
while the non-Bt farmers spent Rs.2766 Bollgard did not bring profit
to farmers; over the three years, the non-Bt farmers earned on
average 60% more than Bt farmers Bollgard did not reduce the cost of
cultivation; on an average, the Bt farmers had incurred 12% more
costs than non-Bt farmers Bollgard did not result in a healthier
environment; researchers found a special kind of root rot spread by
Bollgard cotton, infecting the soil so that other crops would not
grow.
Another report entitled, The story of Bt cotton in Andhra Pradesh:
Erratic processes and results, published by the Centre for
Sustainable Agriculture (CSA), documents the dubious events of three
years of commercial Bt cotton cultivation in AP.
It researched the economics as well as the incidence of pests and
diseases, and beneficial organisms in Bt cotton and non- pesticidal
management (NPM) cotton fields. It established that the cost of pest
management of Bt cotton was 690% higher than in NPM farming systems.
Moreover seed cost of Bt cotton was 355% higher than conventional
varieties.
These findings are documented by the women of the Deccan Development
Society's Community Media Trust, who have made a film called "Bt
Cotton in Warangal: A three year fraud" Their previous film "Why are
Warangal Farmers Angry with Bt Cotton" made in 2003, has been
translated into French, Spanish, Thai and German and English; and is
making waves around the world in national and international film
festivals.
BBC's recently broadcast Bitter Harvest series looks at the plight of
farmers in India through issues such as seed-saving, patents, farmer
suicides, depopulation of rural areas, subsidies, free trade and the
debt trap. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/asiannetwork/features/vaisakhi.sh
tml>http://www.bbc.co.uk/asiannetwork/features/vaisakhi.sht ml
The corporate take-over of farming, the green revolution and
biotechnology are constant points of reference, with detail on how
the public system in the Punjab is used to promote Monsanto's seeds,
and how Monsanto makes use of religion in its advertising to farmers
in order to project its seeds as miraculous.
Never mind the facts
The GEAC approved six new varieties of Monsanto-derived Bt cotton
seed for commercial use in the fertile northern states of Punjab,
Rajasthan and Haryana, and eight new varieties have approval for
large-scale trials in these states. This greatly extends the area
given to GM cotton - which had previously been restricted to six
central and southern states - in spite of the overwhelming evidence
of harm caused to farmers' livelihoods by the GM varieties.
Dr Vandana Shiva of Navdanya and Dr Krishan Bir Choudhary of Bharat
Krishak Samaj, together with representatives of other NGOs, met the
Prime Minister to demand the withdrawal of Bt cotton. Dr Devinder
Sharma, called it "a scientific fraud" to impose Bt cotton on farmers.
The CSA and Gene Campaign complained to the GEAC about its pretence
of inviting consultation with civil society. NGOs were invited, with
one days notice, to voice their concerns; but their promised
10-minute slot was cut to 5 minutes and there was no discussion. A
GEAC member refused to reveal her name on the grounds that it was
confidential.
In a joint letter to GEAC chairman Suresh Chandra, CSA executive
director Dr GV Ramanjaneyulu and Gene Campaign director Dr Suman
Sahai alleged that the evidence of Bt cotton failure which they
provided were not included in the minutes of the meeting. The minutes
contained responses of seed companies on some questions raised by the
GEAC.
The decision to extend the period of approval for Monsanto's failed
Bt cotton hybrids, Mech-12 Bt, Mech-162 Bt and Mech-184 Bt, which
expires this season, was deferred again by the GEAC in April until
the next meeting on May 11. One Bt variety was approved for
commercial cultivation in the 2005 season in central India, and three
more transgenic cotton varieties, including a VIP cotton from
Syngenta, were approved for large-scale field trials in northern
India.
These approvals, in the face of both grass-roots and scientific
evidence of huge losses to farmers using Monsanto's Bt seeds, are
reminiscent of those in Indonesia, which came to an end with a change
in government. Monsanto was exposed and fined $1.5m for bribery and
corruption in the United States ("Corruption, half- truths and lies",
<http://www.i- sis.org.uk/isisnews/sis25.php>SiS 25). The case of the
tampered-with report on GM cotton remains unanswered here.
The AP Coalition demanded that the AP government immediately take
steps to prevent the sale of Bollgard seeds for the present season,
which is already going on. It also demanded that the government order
a judicial enquiry into the official agencies' suppression or
manipulation of the evidence to favour the Mahyco-Monsanto
corporation.
Farmers, scientists and researchers from around the world meeting in
Hyderabad as part of the Global Week of Action, narrated first-hand
encounters with Bt cotton and GM crops. A statement from the Deccan
Development Society (DDS) said: "Having shared our encounters with
genetic engineering from our countries, we are stronger in our
conviction that the use of transgenic crops has unleashed new hazards
onto our farms and into our lives. The profit-driven Îlife' science
industry is more life destroying than life giving."
This article can be found on the I-SIS website at
http://www.i- sis.org.uk/IBTCF.php
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