Argentina Will Sue Monsanto in Spain Over GMO Soy
Date: 18-May-06
Country: ARGENTINA
Author: Nicolas Misculin
Since mid-2005, Monsanto has filed lawsuits against soy importers in several European countries and has stopped shipments of Argentine soymeal at ports in an effort to enforce its patent rights on Roundup Ready soy in Europe.
At stake is nearly US$2 billion in annual trade of Argentine soymeal to Europe. Argentina is the world's top soymeal supplier and the European Union is its No.1 client.
Monsanto has no patent in Argentina but nearly all local farmers plant Roundup Ready seeds, genetically engineered to resist the company's Roundup herbicide. Some farmers buy certified seed, but many others buy contraband or legally extract and reuse the GMO seeds on their farms for free.
The company stepped up pressure on Argentina earlier this month, asking customs officials to stop four Argentine soymeal shipments in Spain and two in the Netherlands, said Gustavo Idigoras, Argentina's agricultural attache in Brussels.
"Together (with European importers) we are going to take other types of action, both on the administrative and the judicial level, in Spain now and we will discuss the possibility of France," Fernando Nebbia, Argentina's undersecretary for agricultural policy, told Reuters.
In Monsanto-backed suits in the Netherlands and Denmark, Argentina is acting as a kind of third party to bolster importers' defense. The US company has also held up Argentine soymeal in Britain and Spain.
"The flow of trade is being interrupted, hurting European consumers and potentially damaging Argentina," Nebbia said.
A spokesman at Monsanto Argentina declined to comment on the government's announced offensive.
Monsanto has been lobbying for a new soy royalty scheme in Argentina for the last two years; the government says the current mechanism should not be changed but that controls should be tightened.
Farmers are worried that these hitches in Europe could push importers to offer less money for Argentine soy, which would eventually pressure prices in Argentina's spot market. The other possibility is that Europe looks elsewhere for meal.
"This is harmful due to lower prices or fewer purchases. For that reason, we have said to the government that we need a solution in the short term," said Alberto Rodriguez, director of the Argentine Chamber of Vegetable Oil Industries, CIARA.