Farmers in El Salvador protested an aid package from the U.S. because the stipulations included indirectly requiring farmers to purchase Monsanto’s genetically modified seeds, reports Natural Society.
The U.S. reportedly threatened to not disperse $277 million in aid if GM seeds were not included in agricultural regulations, according to the Natural Society.
Food & Water Watch, a Washington DC-based watchdog group, issued a report detailing how the U.S. promotes biotech products abroad.
“Between 2007 and 2009, the State Department sent annual cables to ‘encourage the use of agricultural biotechnology,’ directing every diplomatic post worldwide to ‘pursue an active biotech agenda’ that promotes agricultural biotechnology, encourages the export of biotech crops and foods and advocates for pro-biotech policies and laws,” the report said.
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Juan Joaquin Luna Vides heads the Diversified Production program at the Mangrove Association, a community development organization in El Salvador, and is one of the farmers opposing Monsanto’s GM seed.
Natural Society quoted Vides as saying, “Transnational companies have been known to provide expired seeds that they weren’t able to distribute elsewhere. We would like the US embassy and the misinformed media outlets [that are pressuring the Salvadoran government to change their procurement procedure] to know more about the reality of national producers and recognize the food sovereignty of the country.”
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