Foreign firms team up to oppose GM crop rules

Multinational seed companies like Monsanto, Bayer and Dow have split the National Seed Association of India by forming their own organisation to counter the government’s measures in regulating the industry. 

Image Courtesy : The Hindu Businessline

Ten seed companies led by Mahyco Monsanto Biotech (MMBL), which is a 50:50 joint venture between Monsanto and Maharashtra-based Mahyco, announced the decision without disclosing the immediate reason for the split.

“Ten like-minded companies have joined hands to form the association. But others are also welcome,” said Raju Barwale, managing director of Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Co (Mahyco). He declined to elaborate the challenges or reasons behind the split.

MMBL has sub-licenced Bt cotton seed technology since 2002 to various domestic seed companies. The government in April announced a price cap on retail sales of cottonseeds as well as royalty charged by the technology developer. The matter is in court after some seed companies challenged the decision.

As the government has been trying to regulate seed companies by issuing guidelines, Monsanto India on August 25 said it has informed the genetically engineering approval committee (GEAC), regulator of Bt seeds, its decision to withdraw application seeking approval for commercial release of next generation GM cotton seeds.

“Our decision to suspend this introduction in India is an outcome of the uncertainty in the business and regulatory environment, which include the regulation of trait fees and introduction of the draft compulsory licensing guidelines. This decision has no impact on our current cotton portfolio being sold in India,” it said in the statement.

Monsanto had earlier threatened to quit India on this issue, which government officials termed as a pressure tactic. The newly formed federation of seed industry of India (FSII) wants the government to allow the market to determine prices of GM seeds rather than any regulatory mechanism.

“We believe the market should determine the prices. We are for the market-driven mechanism rather than the regulatory mechanism,” FSII president M Ramasami told reporters. He said the federation is driven by the fundamental value of respecting research and intellectual properties of each other companies. It will work to address issues affecting the growth of seed industry in India, he added.

The 10 companies – Bayer, Dow Agro, Dupont Poineer, Mahyco, Metahelix, Monsanto, Namdhari, Rasi, Shriram Bioseeds and Syngenta – claim 30 per cent share in the Rs 15,000 crore Indian seed market.

Courtesy : mydigitalfc.com