Despite dozens of trials, India’s biotech crops remain ‘stymied politically’

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis.

. . .[A]fter a decade of Monsanto’s efforts with Mahyco to win Indian-government approval for biotech food crops, . . . [they] remain in limbo, stymied by environmentalist opposition, farmer skepticism and bureaucratic inertia. Despite dozens of biotech-food-crop trials in India, the country has approved none for commercial cultivation.

“What greater case study in terms of food security than a country that will soon have more people than any other country in the world?” said Robert Fraley, Monsanto’s chief technology officer. “To see a country that has the potential and intellectual ability to be a leader in these biotech advances, to be stymied politically, I think it’s a tragedy.”

. . . .

Meanwhile, Monsanto’s established cotton business in India faces new threats, including new government price controls around seed genetics and an antitrust probe into pricing practices, . . .

Monsanto’s experience is part of a broader backlash against genetically engineered crops from a mix of environmentalists, consumer groups and nationalism thwarting the technology’s expansion after years of growth. . . .

. . . .

India’s food-security concerns may lead it to soften its stance, seed industry officials say. The country is a big importer of edible oil and lentils–protein sources for many mired in poverty–and has high child-malnutrition rates. GMO proponents say biotech seeds would increase production of protein-rich crops on India’s mostly small farms, which the United Nations numbers at 138 million.

. . . .

India’s Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on the petition to bar GMO-crop cultivation. . . .

Read full, original post: Why Monsanto”s Biotech-Food Business Isn”t Growing in India

{{ reviewsTotal }}{{ options.labels.singularReviewCountLabel }}
{{ reviewsTotal }}{{ options.labels.pluralReviewCountLabel }}
{{ options.labels.newReviewButton }}
{{ userData.canReview.message }}
screenshot at  pm

Are pesticide residues on food something to worry about?

In 1962, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring drew attention to pesticides and their possible dangers to humans, birds, mammals and the ...
glp menu logo outlined

Newsletter Subscription

* indicates required
Email Lists
glp menu logo outlined

Get news on human & agricultural genetics and biotechnology delivered to your inbox.