November 25, 2009

While Filipino farmers are working hard to persuade the Arroyo government to stop the importation of Bayer’s genetically modified (GM) rice, U.S. farmers have already sued Bayer for financial losses totaling US$150 million as a result of GM contamination of their rice crop.

The Bloomberg news service reported on November 4, 2009 that rice farmers from Missouri, a midwestern state of the U.S., are suing Bayer for the financial losses they sustained when their rice crop was contaminated by Bayer’s GM rice.

Bayer and the Louisiana State University had been testing the GM rice for resistance to the Liberty herbicide, which Bayer also developed, when the GM rice was “accidentally” released and found its way into the U.S. rice crop. Thirty percent of America’s ricelands were reportedly contaminated.

The Missouri lawsuit is the first of over 1,200 cases that have been filed by farmers from five U.S. states since 2006, when a report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) sent U.S. rice futures plummetting by at least 14 percent in a matter of days. The USDA had found trace amounts of Bayer’s GM rice in U.S. long grain stocks.

News of the contamination resulted in a US$150M decline in rice futures as well as a fall in exports as the European Union (EU), Japan, Russia and other overseas markets either cut back or stopped their importation of the U.S. long grain rice.

The Bloomberg story quoted lawyer Don Downing, who is prosecuting the Missouri farmers’ case, as having accused Bayer of “sloppy” testing in its rush to beat Monsanto Co. to the punch. Monsanto, another giant agrochemicals company, is also developing herbicide-resistant crop varieties.

Covering the Missouri trial, Bloomberg quoted Downing's opening statement thus: “Bayer was supposed to be careful. Bayer was not careful and that rice did escape into our commercial rice supplies.”

Meanwhile, Bayer has repeatedly claimed that its herbicide-resistant rice poses no food safety issues. Yet, its GM rice has yet to be commercially marketed in the U.S.

In the Philippines, Bayer is lobbying hard for the importation of one of its GM rice strains into the country. In light of Bayer’s U.S. debacle, Filipino farmers’ groups are appealing to the BPI (Read Farmers' petition letter to the BPI: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4) to protect the country's farmers from similar financial ruin that could result from the entry of GM rice into the country.--by Teresa L. Debuque

For further information, contact:

Golda Hilario/Paul Borja

SEARICE policy officers

Tel: (+632) 433-7182/433-2067

Telefax: (+632) 922-6710

Mobile: 091751245496; +639175119498

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