Monsanto’s Latest Sneaky Endeavor: Patent Common European Crops

(NaturalSociety.com) The big bad boogeyman of modern health and agriculture is at it again (although, has never really stopped being at it). This time, Monsanto’s latest endeavor involves taking advantage of loopholes in European laws that would allow them to patent common fruits and vegetables- produce that the GMO-giant has no business “owning.” Worst of all, the European Patent Office (PAO) has allegedly given their approval to the venture.

Monsanto is exploiting these loopholes to give itself exclusive rights over conventional seeds. These are seeds they had nothing to do with creating or altering (yet), but are existing seeds being used across Europe.

AVAAZ has drafted a petition to put a stop to this latest effort, and as of press time, it has gained well over 2.1 million signatures. (You can sign the petition yourself here).

In order to stop Monsanto, nations like Germany, France, and the Netherlands must get involved. They must work to amend European patent laws to block these loopholes with the help of the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organization.

These countries already have a growing opposition to Monsanto and their history of agricultural bullying, so the hope is they will be amenable to fighting these patent laws.

“Since the year 2000, there have been more and more patents granted on plants and animals derived from conventional breeding” in Europe, explains a recent report from No Patents on Seeds. “Presently, there are around 100 such patents on plants, and around 1,000 applications have been filed.”

Monsanto isn’t alone in this effort to take over the world’s seed supply (and ultimately the food supply); Syngenta and other biotech companies are similarly rushing to patent naturally occurring plants and animals. It’s frightening to think of what could happen if living things were owned by these devilish companies, but we must act now if we hope to stop them.

Globally, people and their respective governments are wising up to Monsanto’s ways. While the U.S. government is lagging behind, European nations like Italy have gone so far as to ban GMO corn, one of the most prolific crops grown here in the U.S.

We must act as a global community to stand in solidarity against corporate interests. If it affects people in Europe, it affects us too.