Anyone else seen this? I watched it last night. Pretty shocking documentary if you ask me. I was really surprised at Monsanto and their control over the soy bean industry.

Also, I didn't realize how much shit has corn products in it. Its pretty much in EVERYTHING we consume.

Monsanto is also a pretty dick head company if you ask me.

Here is the trailer for it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2sgaO44_1c

This documentary is a must watch if you have the time.


[Edited on January 5, 2010 at 11:33 PM. Reason : .]

1/5/2010 11:27:06 PM

corn is the most important crop in America

1/5/2010 11:29:51 PM

Oh yeah, Monsanto runs shit.

1/5/2010 11:31:11 PM

I never realized how subsidized it was.

It basically sells for way less than what it costs to grow it.

1/5/2010 11:31:49 PM

Yeah, I heard that the whole thing is incredibly fucked up.

I'll definitely watch this if I get the chance.

1/5/2010 11:34:18 PM

Michael Pollan FTW, yo
http://www.michaelpollan.com/

1/5/2010 11:55:42 PM

saw this at The Colony back in...whenever it came to Raleigh. enjoyed it, and yes...Monsanto runs shit.

most enjoyed the farmer in Shenandoah Valley in VA. I still relay the convo of the organic farmer meeting w/ Wal-Mart reps ("I've never even been to Wal-Mart." "Oh really?!") to others when I talk about the doc b/c it made me giggle then, and still does now.

1/5/2010 11:57:30 PM

Yeah that guy from VA with the farm was cool as hell. I would love to sit at a bar with that guy and have some beers and just listen to him tell stories. He was just so enthusiastic about life and his job and how things are changing for the good and bad.

It was hilarious when he pretty much called the FDA out for them saying his working conditions were unsanitary.

[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 12:04 AM. Reason : l]

1/6/2010 12:03:43 AM

DH Hill has it. me thinks I'll swing by and check it out tomorrow morning

1/6/2010 12:36:12 AM

Or you could just download it and watch it in an hour.

1/6/2010 12:42:17 AM

eh. i don't feel like staying up til 4am

1/6/2010 12:43:31 AM

Monsanto has a patent on a certain soy bean that is resistant to RoundUp so basically you can spray them and have no weeds around the cops. They own this seed and the seeds it produces, and something like 90% of all soy beans in America are Monsantos bean. It wont be long before they basically own the soybean. A company having complete ownership over a crop is mind boggling.

Thats kinda fucked up if you think about it.

And for those of you who haven't seen this, they strictly enforce their ownership so its not like people are going to be able to slip by.

1/6/2010 12:45:31 AM

I don't know, Monsanto seems to think that this "documentary" is nothing but a pack of lies.

http://www.monsanto.com/foodinc/

1/6/2010 1:34:41 AM

haha, what are they supposed to say?

"Yep, its all true"

1/6/2010 2:13:28 AM

http://thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=585338

1/6/2010 2:22:29 AM

^^^Wow, Monsanto is fucking retarded. I got to question 2of7 on that thing which was..

True or False:
The US produces about 40% of the world's corn and uses only 20% of the total global corn acreage harvested in the world.

Which really had nothing to do with Monsanto, however, you click on "true" and it gives you this:

CORRECT
The correct answer is True.
Food, Inc. suggests the US produces too much corn and subsidizes the overproduction.

However the film fails to recognize that the US produces corn for other countries and is largest exporter of corn in the world. In 2007, the US exported 2.4 billion bushels, or 134.4 billion pounds, of corn. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, the Middle East and North Africa are some of the biggest importers of corn.

No shit, this is EXCACTLY what the movie was calling attention to! The US subsidizes all corn production for the most part. It grows so much and is able to sell it for so cheap because of the subsidizing, that its cheaper for other countries to just import it than to grow it themselves.

Im going to the other questions now....

3of7

Monsanto developed the concept of patenting seed.

I clicked false, obviously.

CORRECT
The correct answer is False.
Patenting of seeds with enhanced genetics was actually in practice 10 years before Monsanto introduced its first genetically modified seeds. Patent protection for seeds exists for GM and non-GM seeds alike.

Once again, the movie never claimed that they invented the concept, just that they did it to the soy bean, one of the more important seeds in farming.



4of7

Every year Monsanto sues or threatens to sue hundreds of farmers for saving their own seed.

haha, I hit correct just because I assume its true.

INCORRECT
The correct answer is False.
Monsanto pursues legal action against farmers who improperly save and resell or replant our patented seed only when other efforts to resolve the issue prove unsuccessful. The first time growers purchase Monsanto seed, they sign a stewardship agreement and contract not to save and resell or replant seeds produced from the crops they grow from Monsanto seed.

A very small percentage of farmers do not honor this agreement. Monsanto does become aware, through our own actions or through third-parties, of individuals who are suspected of violating our patents and agreements. Where we do find violations, we are able to settle most of these cases without ever going to trial. In many cases, these farmers remain our customers. Sometimes however, we are forced to resort to lawsuits. This is a relatively rare circumstance, with about 138 lawsuits having been filed within the last decade. Less than a dozen cases required a full trial.

Whether the farmer settles right away, or the case settles during or through trial, the proceeds are donated to youth leadership initiatives including scholarship programs.


First off, the movie never said they sue farmers for "saving their own seeds" It said that they got sued for saving Monsanto seeds, for saving seeds from plants that on accident had been cross pollinated from Monsanto seeds, and they even sued some guy for running a seed cleaning business for non Monsanto growers because they said he was encouraging Monsanto growers to save Monsanto seeds even though seed cleaning for soybeans has been regularly practiced for pretty much the entire existence of the soybean.

And the low amount of court cases is obviously because the majority of these farmers cant even afford to begin litgation and more than likely just shut down operation when threatened by a law suit, which was also covered in the movie.

5of7

The agriculture industry purposely places former employees in regulatory positions in order to control regulations on their own products.

I hit true, of course it came back..

INCORRECT
The correct answer is False.
Both the public and private sectors benefit when employers have access to the most competent and experienced people. It makes sense that someone in government who has concluded biotechnology is a positive, beneficial technology might go to work for a biotech company, just as someone who believes otherwise might find employment in an organization that rejects agricultural biotechnology/

haha, what fucking bullshit. Its not like the movie was lying about what the people in government did before they had major government jobs overseeing agriculture and the food industry. That info is basically public information.

Its the equivilant of someone who used to be the CEO of Exxon being head of the EPA and working to shoot down bills or deny laws that regulate the impact of oil companies on the environment.


6of7

Monsanto Company owns and operates corporate farms

I hit false, because I know its false.

CORRECT
The correct answer is False.
Monsanto is an agriculture company that sells seeds and other agricultural products; we do not grow or produce crops for the food supply. Both small and large farming operations purchase our products for personal or commercial use. It is not Monsanto's business to grow or produce crops for food production and any grain, fiber or produce we sell as a commodity is inconsequential to the market.

Once again, NO SHIT. The movie never claimed this at all. You sell seeds to farmer then sue the ones that go against you or that threaten you. That was the entire point of that segment of the movie. You control the seeds and in turn control the farmers and pretty much every aspect of what happens with that seed and after it is done.

7of7

Monsanto has effectively positioned itself as the sole provider of seeds in the agriculture industry.

I hit false, because its only soy.

CORRECT
The correct answer is False.
Monsanto is one of several suppliers of seed in the agriculture industry. Monsanto's top competitors include DuPont, Dow, Syngenta, Bayer CropScience, and a number of small independent seed companies.


Yep, and how many of those companies have the same soy bean that you do that controls the overwhelming majority of that industry? The movie never claimed that you were the sole provider of seeds, just soy seeds, which you seem like you are.




My god, that shit is just mind boggling. After going through all that, and seeing the documentary I a gotta go with the doc. Monsanto basically totally avoided the main issues and twisted the questions into shit that were never even mentioned or part of the documentary. Whoever came up with that shit on their website needs to be fired. They would have been better off just not addressing the issue of their role in Food Inc.

1/6/2010 3:06:47 AM

Sorry for the longness, I dont think I have ever been this pissed off over an issue before.

1/6/2010 3:08:03 AM

http://www.filestube.com/61366554cb82023303e9,g/Food-Inc-2008-DVD-SCR.html

And read about Codex Alimentarius,

It will anger/scare you even more.

[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 3:21 AM. Reason : /]

1/6/2010 3:15:32 AM

the major seed company's do really have a strangle hold, but hell you don't HAVE to use their seed, you just get much better yields with it.

similar to, you don't HAVE to fertilize your yard or even mow it, but it will look like ass if you don't

as for subsidies, inflation would be worse with out them, food would cost a lot more, and other folks in other countries would starve. ultimately that's going to be our big stick. not the military, but the ability to cut off the flow of food to a country is a very powerful threat

[Edited on January 6, 2010 at 9:31 AM. Reason : s]

1/6/2010 9:26:20 AM

I highly recommend anyone that is interested, read 'The Omnivore's Dilemma' and 'Eating Animals.'

1/6/2010 10:14:37 AM

Quote :

"the major seed company's do really have a strangle hold, but hell you don't HAVE to use their seed, you just get much better yields with it. similar to, you don't HAVE to fertilize your yard or even mow it, but it will look like ass if you don't"

The thing is, it doesn't have to be 100% their seed. If a crop down the street from you uses it, the monsanto seeds can infect your seeds and then they'll show up and deem you're using their seed and sue you.

Also, they've outlawed using the seed your crop produces and if they catch you "cleaning" seeds, they'll sue you. They do a fantastic job of forcing you to use their seed.

1/6/2010 1:02:51 PM

This movie has dramatically changed the way I will be eating going forward.

1/6/2010 2:43:27 PM

they have it on instant watch on netflix,

haven't watched it yet, but its on my list

1/6/2010 3:11:05 PM

Quote :

"haha, what are they supposed to say?"

I just saw that when I googled the movie and thought that it was good for a laugh.

Sorry to get you so worked up.

1/6/2010 3:15:15 PM

i watched this the other day. i think i was most shocked at the cattle feed lots.

King of Corn is a similar documentary. Two guys buy an acre in the middle of an industrial corn farm and track the growth, economics, etc.

1/6/2010 8:12:48 PM

if you like this you should watch Bullshit with Penn and Teller, they did an episode on the whole natural/organic movement that is a different aspect of the food subject.

http://www.ninjavideo.net/cat/1631

1/6/2010 10:04:33 PM

my fiance informs me that the Agriculture Dept of NC State (as recently as 5 years ago, may have changed) was almost completely funded by Monsanto grants, her dad was one of the research professors

1/6/2010 11:30:02 PM

^^ So many things wrong with that video...

1/7/2010 1:15:46 AM

This is unrelated, but you should check out The Cove.

1/7/2010 2:29:21 AM

What is The Cove?

1/7/2010 2:49:48 AM

^/message_topic.aspx?topic=577017

http://www.thecovemovie.com/

or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KRD8e20fBo

[Edited on January 7, 2010 at 8:11 AM. Reason : ]

1/7/2010 8:06:04 AM

Just watched this on the instant queue. It mirrors Omnivores Dilemma pretty closely.

I can't believe it's illegal to talk shit about food in some states.

"disparaging a food product"

1/9/2010 4:35:19 PM

^Yeah thats pretty fucked up

1/9/2010 4:38:26 PM

watched this a few weeks ago. I thought it was pretty good, didn't really bring up anything new or shocking that I haven't seen before. Still good for the non-ag crowd.

1/10/2010 9:35:39 AM

Quote :

"It wont be long before they basically own the soybean. A company having complete ownership over a crop is mind boggling. "

Patents run out eventually. And farmers are so enthralled with Monsanto's variety because it is better than anything else they can get their hands on. They would rather pay for Monsanto than plant the free stuff.

Quote :

"as for subsidies, inflation would be worse with out them, food would cost a lot more, and other folks in other countries would starve."

Facts not in evidence. In most poor countries agriculture employs the vast majority of the workforce. As such, higher food prices would dramatically improve the balance sheets of the vast majority of their workers. While those in the city would become even poorer, the world's poor living in cities historically have higher incomes than their country brethren, so higher food prices might actually reduce starvation as wages rise workers shift to agriculture.

As for Americans, subsidization causes more inflation than market adjustments. Yes, corn prices will rise, and that will cause some inflation, but the government cost burden through taxes or treasury borrowing will fall, causing deflation. As the government is not efficient and must borrow/tax more than a dollar for every dollar of subsidy, this overall deflationary effect would be larger than the directed inflationary effect.

1/10/2010 11:42:21 AM

Quote :

"And farmers are so enthralled with Monsanto's variety because it is better than anything else they can get their hands on. They would rather pay for Monsanto than plant the free stuff. "

I refuse to believe this is always true. If Monsanto was so confident their seed is that much better why be so militant about taking down farmers that weren't using their product but rather a casualty of having their crops contaminated with a monsanto seed?

1/10/2010 1:46:15 PM

I have been meaning to watch this movie... I think I'll do that tonight.

Quote :

"Monsanto runs shit."

I used to work for a company that did research for Monsanto (and was eventually bought out by them). Yeah, Monsanto is no joke.

1/10/2010 3:22:55 PM

Quote :

" I refuse to believe this is always true. If Monsanto was so confident their seed is that much better why be so militant about taking down farmers that weren't using their product but rather a casualty of having their crops contaminated with a monsanto seed?"

Facts not in evidence. It is unclear to me that Monsanto has sued 90% of the farms in America. Far more likely, Farmers are clever people and realize that it would be nice to be able to plant Monsanto crops without paying for them, so they took advantage of contamination to do so. It is also probable that Monsanto jumped the gun repeatedly and sued innocent farmers on these same terms. Not to be evil, but to protect their patents, as under U.S. law if patent infringements go unlitigated then you will lose them.

Whatever the case, without evidence of the farmer intentionally taking advantage of such contamination, it would be very unlikely for Monsanto to will such a lawsuit. Which is probably why the propaganda always points out the lawsuits without mentioning how they were ultimately settled. Especially when Monsanto cannot get search warrants, and so for Monsanto to even figure out you were planting their seeds would be very difficult, wherever you got them. So, while it is possible some farmers were intimidated, I'm pretty sure the intimidation figure is not 90%, as most farmers I know would stand on principle whatever the costs.

1/10/2010 5:30:02 PM

Quote :

"most farmers I know would stand on principle whatever the costs."

Too bad lawyers don't accept principle for payment.

Quote :

"Which is probably why the propaganda always points out the lawsuits without mentioning how they were ultimately settled."

I'm pretty sure the resolution of the lawsuits discussed in Food, Inc were all mentioned during the program. Other than where Oprah was sued for saying she wouldn't eat beef during a mad cow disease outbreak (which took 6 years and a million dollars to fight), the handful of lawsuits mentioned settled out of court because the farmer could no longer afford the legal costs.

It's not like malicious lawsuits are unheard of. Exhibit A: RIAA.

[Edited on January 10, 2010 at 5:50 PM. Reason : ]

1/10/2010 5:48:04 PM

For someone who seemingly has more than a few farming friends, you sure do seem to support big business pretty strongly here.

1/10/2010 7:09:58 PM

Quote :

"Still good for the non-ag crowd."

This is exactly who the producers of the video are trying to target because they will eat up anything that is said in the video, especially if they already view the food industry in a negative light. The biggest thing to remember when watching videos like this is that it is negative propaganda straight to the core. Sure, some things are true and no, the food industry is not perfect. But you also have to realize that they will take various facts and use them to strategically skew the truth and enrage or shock the average viewer. Been a while since I've seen it but I remember them basically implying that the food industry was safer 50 years ago than it is today(umm, no it isn't) and they used "fuzzy" facts to back up there argument. In my opinion the American food industry is one of the great success stories of efficiency and industrialization in the entire world.

1/10/2010 8:19:31 PM

^^ To the best of my understanding, most people would consider farming to be a fairly big business. My family owns millions of dollars of farmland, and yet that is not nearly enough land to be considered farmers, since it is not nearly enough land to afford all the machinery required, so we contract out the whole process to real farmers which themselves own many tens of millions of dollars in land and then millions more in machinery. Now that Dupont left, I suspect farmers are probably the largest businesses in the entire county, followed by the car dealerships.

Quote :

"Too bad lawyers don't accept principle for payment."

But juries and judges often do.

Quote :

"It's not like malicious lawsuits are unheard of."

Absolutely true. Others would know better than me if Monsanto is abusing the legal system. If they are, then they are perpetrating evil and we need to introduce a looser pays legal rule to curtail that behavior from everyone, including Monsanto. But patenting a genetically modified plant is not an abuse in the traditional sense. I personally do not believe patents as a legal protection should exist, but that is another discussion. But it would be more evil to provide patents for the inventor of the clapper and not provide them to Monsanto.

1/10/2010 10:15:30 PM

just watched this last night. some pretty troubling shit!

3/6/2010 10:47:42 AM

I thought the movie was poorly done. Its just the shotgun approach of shoving out a whole bunch of shit (no matter it is unrelated or contradictory) and finding something that gets at someone. I thought "Beer Wars" was a similar documentary but was much more focused and to the point.

My favorite was the Mexican family complaining about broccoli being $1.29 a lb. after they each spent $2 on soda at a drive-thru. Then the documentary goes on to push small organic farms with prices double what you'd find at the grocery store.

Oh, and I also hate the cheap ploy of "Company X refused to comment on the matter" with some overly dramatic Law&Order-esque sounds in the background.

I thought the Monsanto bit had no place in the film. It is a patent law issue and didn't really fit with the rest of the themes. They should have made an entirely separate film out of Monsanto. It definitely would have been better than this hodge podge collection of topics and much more interesting. I thought most of the stuff in Food Inc. was common knowledge (then again my wife is a veterinarian and a pathologist so I've probably heard more than normal).

3/8/2010 1:32:29 AM