In article , Charlie wrote:
On Fri, 25 May 2007 11:07:13 -0900, Jan Flora
wrote:
The price of corn in the US is way up because of ethanol production.
The USDA predicts that more corn will be planted this year than has
been planted since before WWII. (The exact year eludes me. I'd have
to look it up.)
The price of corn is up in Mexico, too, making it hard for poor
folks to afford masa to make tortillas.
The first book Michael Pollen wrote is pretty interesting, too:
"The Botany of Desire."
I'm not quite awake yet. Please excuse the stilted language...
http://hawaiiseed.org/seed_exchange.html
"New legislation in Iraq recently put in place by the US prevents
farmers from saving their seeds. The Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) estimates that 97% of Iraq’s farmers use saved seed
from their own stocks from last year’s harvest or purchased in local
markets. When the new law Order No. 81 (4/26/04) goes into effect,
seed saving will be illegal and markets will offer only PVP (Plant
Variety Protected) seed which has been “invented” and patented and
licensed by the transnational corporations. "
There are many articles about this happening.
It's no wonder farmers in southern Iraq are beginning to grow poppies.
They who control the essentials, control the people.
Next thing you know, we who save seeds will be busted.
Screw 'em.
Charlie
http://www.cpa-iraq.org/regulations/
Lord, Charlie, that is mind numbing to try and read.
I don't know how growing open pollinating corn could be illegel. Any
patent that there may have been, would have run out long ago, it has
been around forever. But if it is the deal where it is GMO corn or
whatever being grown, then the pollen will drift and contaminate
adjacent fields. I think the contaminator should be held responsible
but, as we saw up in Canada, the poor schmuck who had his soybeans
contaminated was held resposible when he tried to grow the seeds that he
had raised.
The Iraqui Government should be given a grace period in which to develop
their own hybrids, while the country pulls itself back together. Which
won't happen until Bush gets the oil. Besides, if there wasn't a
conlict, Bush would have no war profits.
Sort of reminds me of Il Duce.
- Bill
Coloribus gustibus non disputatum