Cornucopia’s Take: Monsanto chose to sell a new dicamba-resistant seed prior to the approval. The new GMO seeds are resistant to the application of dicamba, an older pesticide that is known for its toxicity and tendency to drift. And that pesticide drift is allegedly polluting neighboring lands, causing enormous damage. Monsanto has so far refused to take any responsibility, but is now being sued. The dicamba resistant plants were developed due to growing weed resistance to Monsanto’s flagship pesticide containing glyphosate. Herbicide resistance is part of the pesticide treadmill. Of course this herbicide is not allowed in organics.
Missouri’s Largest Peach Farmer Sues Monsanto for Losses From Illegal Herbicide Use
EcoWatch
by Lorraine Chow
 |
Missouri’s largest peach grower is suing Monsanto over claims that dicamba drift caused widespread damage to the farm’s peach trees. This is Monsanto’s first lawsuit over the illegal spraying of the herbicide on its genetically modified (GMO) cotton and soy that’s suspected of causing extensive damage to non-target crops across America’s farm belt.
The lawsuit, Bader Farms, Inc., et al v. Monsanto Company, Case No. 16DU-CC00111, was filed in Dunklin County, Missouri on Nov. 23. Bill Bader of Bader Farms in Campbell, Missouri claims that more than 7,000 peach trees were damaged by the drift-prone and extremely volatile herbicide in 2015, amounting to $1.5 million in losses. This year, the farm said it lost more than 30,000 trees, with financial losses estimated in the millions.
The complaint accuses Monsanto of knowingly selling dicamba-tolerant cotton and soybean seeds to farmers before securing federal approval for the herbicide designed to go along with it. Bollgard II XtendFlex cotton was introduced in 2015 and Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans was introduced earlier this year. However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency only approved the corresponding herbicide, XtendiMax with VaporGrip Technology, last month.
