Business and Human Rights: a resource website |
Biotechnology companies |
See also the following sections of this website:
International standards:
United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (1992)
The Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights [explanatory material] (UNESCO)
Websites:
Aventis CropScience: Our position on... (Aventis CropScience)
Biodiversity, Access, Indigenous Knowledge and IPRs [intellectual property rights] (Third World Network)
Bioethics and Human Rights Links (University of Minnesota Human Rights Library)
Biopiracy and appropriation of traditional knowledge (Third World Network)
Biotechnology (Global Trade Negotiations Home Page, Center for International Development at Harvard University)
Biotechnology (U.S. Food and Drug Administration)
Biotechnology: Ethics & The Industry (Industry Canada, Government of Canada)
Center for Bioethics (University of Pennsylvania)
European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies (European Commission)
FoodFirst: Institute for Food and Development Policy
Genetic Engineering (Greenpeace)
Genetic Engineering (Sierra Club)
A Global Roadmap for Modern Biotechnology: An issues-based navigational tool with policy options for decision-makers in the public and private sectors (International Chamber of Commerce)
Global Trade Negotiations: Intellectual Property Rights (Center for International Development at Harvard University)
Health (Third World Network)
Health and Human Rights Database (Boston University School of Public Health)
Indigenous Knowledge (Global Development Gateway)
Indigenous Knowledge and Community Rights (Third World Network)
Industry Watch: Biotechnology (Washington Post)
Integrity in Science: The Integrity in Science project seeks to safeguard science and the public welfare from the corruptive effects of industry’s influence (Integrity in Science, a project of The Center for Science in the Public Interest)
Intellectual Property and Traditional Knowledge, Innovations and Creativity (World Intellectual Property Organization)
Issue Library: Biotechnology (CorpWatch)
Sierra Club:
Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security (Friends of the Earth)
TRIPS, sui generis and plant variety protection (Third World Network)
Upcoming events [Genetically engineered food/biotech] (GE Food Alert Campaign Center)
World Health Organization (WHO) / Organisation Mondiale de la Santé (OMS)
Health as a Human Right (World Health Organization)
{···français: La sante en tant que droit de l'homme}
World Trade Organization website (World Trade Organization)
World Trade Organization and Indigenous Peoples (Indigenous Environmental Network)
2003:
Greenpeace warns investors Monsanto a risk - Anti-biotech forces opened a new line of attack on agrochemical producer Monsanto Co, warning investors that the company's increasing focus on development of genetically modified crops was destined for disaster. (Carey Gillam, Reuters, 22 Apr. 2003)
Food experts set guidelines to judge biotech risks - International food experts agreed on a framework last week for assessing the risks of biotech foods, establishing global guidelines that could help shape countries' food policies and influence trade disputes. (Tim Large, Reuters, 17 Mar. 2003)
Biotech crops Become Common on American Farms Despite Health Concerns - The U.S. government this week approved a new strain of genetically altered corn that promises to reduce the amount of chemical insecticide farmers spray...Despite concerns among critics about possible health or environmental impacts, biotech crops have become common on American farms. (Steve Baragona, Voice of America, 1 Mar. 2003)
2002:
Group Moves to Protect Farmers' Right to Seeds -...Farmers' seed rights, according to ActionAid, have become increasingly jeopardized by the global expansion of intellectual property rights, which are often characterized by the use of patents, copyrights, or trademarks, and enforced by international conventions such as TRIPs. (Kalyani, OneWorld South Asia, 15 Oct. 2002)
Traditional knowledge of biodiversity in Asia-Pacific: Problems of Piracy & Protection (GRAIN [Genetic Resources Action International] and Kalpavriksh, Oct. 2002)
Big oil groups top league for 'greenwash' - The big oil companies were some of the first multinationals to find themselves in the environmental "hall of shame" on Friday in the run up to next week's World Summit on Sustainable Development...Friends of the Earth singled out Shell, British Petroleum (BP) and ExxonMobil for accusations that they had played up green credentials but fell short of their much-publicised environmentally friendly ideals...The "Green Oscars" were awarded by FoE to companies that had produced the most "greenwash" since the Rio Earth summit in 1992. It ranked among the best theatrical performances those by oil companies and the biotech companies Monsanto, Novartis and Aventis. Sasol, the South African fuels company, and Eskom, the local state-owned power group, also received "honourable" mentions. (James Lamont, Financial Times, 23 Aug. 2002)
- {···español} Los acuerdos de la OMC y la salud pública — un estudio conjunto de la OMS y la Secretaría de la OMC (Organización Mundial del Comercio, 20 agosto 2002)
- {···français} Les accords de l'OMC et la santé publique, étude conjointe de l'OMS et du Secrétariat de l'OMC (l’Organisation mondiale du Commerce, 20 août 2002)
- {···español} Los acuerdos de la OMC y la salud pública (La Organización Mundial de la Salud y la Secretaría de la Organización Mundial del Comercio, agosto 2002)
- {···français} Les accords de l'OMC et la santé publique (L'Organisation mondiale de la Santé et le Secrétariat de l’Organisation mondiale du Commerce, août 2002)
includes section entitled "Towards binding corporate accountability"
also includes the following case studies:
11. Worldwide: Aventis, Monsanto (genetically modified food)
Second South-South Biopiracy Summit - "Biopiracy - Ten Years Post-Rio" - Hosted by Biowatch South Africa - 22-23 August 2002 - Johannesburg, South Africa - ...Aim: To share information and raise awareness on access & benefit sharing, bioprospecting, biopiracy, intellectual property rights, traditional knowledge. This day is primarily focused on civil society sharing experiences on legislation implementation & community experiences through case studies. (Biowatch South Africa) [added to this site on 22 July 2002]
Bayer and the UN Global Compact - How and Why a Major Pharmaceutical and Chemical Company "Bluewashes" its Image -...Bayer's use of the Global Compact is a classic case of "bluewash" -- using the good reputation of the United Nations to present a corporate humanitarian image without a commitment to changing real-world behavior [includes reference to conduct during World Wars I and II, pesticide & environmental issues] (Philipp Mimkes, Coalition Against Bayer Dangers, Corpwatch website, 19 July 2002)
Peruvian's love root under threat - Today ActionAid joins the tug-of-love between poor farmers and a US corporation over a natural alternative to Viagra. The international charity is joining the global campaign calling on PureWorld Botanicals to drop its patents on maca, a sexual stimulant grown high in the Peruvian mountains. Local people risk losing out on booming profits as patents lodged by the US corporation could stop them selling extracts of the plant in the UK and the rest of the world. (ActionAid, 7 July 2002)
India's Digital Library Aids Biopirates - Activists - Far from protecting biodiversity and traditional knowledge, India's new Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) may be just the thing that biopirates have been looking for in navigating through the country's vast ocean of ancient literature on indigenous herbs and their uses, critics say. (Ranjit Devraj, Inter Press Service, 4 July 2002)
{···español} Grupos indígenas de AL exhortan a gobiernos a proteger la biodiversidad - Rechazan transgénicos y agrotóxicos, en documento final - Organizaciones indígenas, campesinas y sociales de 12 países, reunidas en Guatemala en la segunda Semana por la Diversidad Biológica y Cultural, aseguraron en su declaración final que es responsabilidad de los gobiernos de América Latina y de las empresas biotecnológicas la destrucción de esta riqueza. (Elio Henriquez, La Jornada [México], 3 Julio 2002)
Biotech sector urged to focus on problems of poor countries - The biotechnology sector must develop drugs and crops that address problems in the developing world, and work more closely with non-governmental organisations, if its growing international presence is not to provoke a backlash, according to an industry leader [Carl Feldbaum, president of the Biotechnology Industry Organisation] (Geoff Dyer, Financial Times, 12 June 2002)
The fake persuaders: Corporations are inventing people to rubbish their opponents on the internet - While, in the past, companies have created fake citizens' groups to campaign in favour of trashing forests or polluting rivers, now they create fake citizens. [refers to Monsanto and the Bivings Group] (George Monbiot, Guardian [UK], 14 May 2002)
course: Biotechnology: Legal and Ethical Considerations, 8-18 July 2002, Vermont Law School, USA [posted to this website 10 May 2002]
company website: Monsanto: Biotechnology (Monsanto)
BIOSAFETY: Annual Meeting Eyes Cartagena Protocol Implementation (UN Wire, 23 Apr. 2002)
UN conference backs indigenous peoples drug payout: A global environmental conference last week hammered out guidelines to encourage big business to pay indigenous communities for the right to use native plants to make commercial drugs and cosmetics. (Otti Thomas, Reuters, 22 Apr. 2002)
UN moves to curb bio-piracy (Tim Hirsch, BBC News, 17 Apr. 2002)
TECHNOLOGY: U.N., Chinese Officials Urge Sharing Of Breakthroughs - A U.N. conference on technology and sustainable development opened Monday in Beijing with U.N. Undersecretary General Nitin Desai saying scientific advances that aid in balancing ecology and development should be made available to all. Specifically citing nanotechnology, biotechnology and information technology, Desai called for new international mechanisms to help share technological breakthroughs. (UN Wire, 17 Apr. 2002)
GM activists call for ban to protect poor farmers - Environmentalists will press delegates at an international conference on biodiversity this week to ban a controversial form of genetic modification that deliberately sterilises crop seeds. (Steve Connor, Independent [UK], 8 Apr. 2002)
Biotechnology's Third Generation: From Golden Rice to Anti-Viral Tomatoes -- Good Health or Good Marketing? (Carmelo Ruiz-Marrero, CorpWatch, 5 Apr. 2002)
Bt Cotton: Seeds of Discontent -...U.S. chemical giant Monsanto's efforts -- through its Indian partner Mahyco -- to seek approval for commercializing the controversial transgenic Bt Cotton seeds in India has come under intense criticism. (Meena Menon and Nityanand Jayaraman, CorpWatch India, 25 Mar. 2002)
Judge approves $9 million settlement in bioengineered-corn suit [USA]: A federal judge approved a $9 million settlement Thursday in a class-action lawsuit by consumers who complained of allergic reactions to genetically modified corn in supermarket products...The StarLink corn seed...had been approved by the [U.S.] Environmental Protection Agency for use in animal feed but not for human consumption...Aventis and Garst were defendants in the lawsuit along with Kraft Foods Co. of Glenview, Ill.; Azteca Foods Inc. of Chicago; Azteca Milling, Co. of Edinburg, Texas; and a sister company, Mission Foods Co. (Mike Robinson, Associated Press, on Environmental News Network website, 8 Mar. 2002)
How Monsanto got bruised in a food fight: The group's genetically modified crops were welcomed in the US. It was unprepared for the reaction in Europe, says Michael Skapinker (Michael Skapinker, Financial Times, 7 Mar. 2002)
Bio "gold" rush in Chiapas on hold [Mexico]: A $2.5 million project to research Chiapas plants for possible commercial use was halted after it roused the ire of indigenous rights activists. When does "bioprospecting" become "biopiracy"? (Barbara Belejack, NACLA Report on the Americas [North American Congress on Latin America], Mar.-Apr. 2002)
Brazil starts mapping medicinal plant potential:...With the new center, Brazil hopes to uncover and document more herbal remedies in a bid to preserve and protect its valuable plant species from bio-pirates who frequently coerce poor Amazon tribes into extracting plant remedies for export. (Katherine Baldwin, Reuters, 26 Feb. 2002)
Jury finds Monsanto liable for releasing tons of PCB [USA] - Firm covered up pollution for more than 40 years: An Alabama jury has found that Monsanto Co. engaged in "outrageous" behavior by releasing tons of polychlorinated biphenyl into the city of Anniston and covering up its actions for decades, handing 3,500 local residents a huge victory in a landmark environmental lawsuit. (Michael Grunwald, Washington Post, 23 Feb. 2002)
Companies 'face rising risks over human rights': Multinational companies face a growing risk of being associated with human rights violations, according to research published in London yesterday by Amnesty International and the Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum. The research examines the operations of 129 leading companies in 34 countries where human rights abuses including torture, forced child labour and denial of freedom of expression occur. (Alison Maitland, Financial Times, 13 Feb. 2002)Hundreds of NGOs from more than 50 nations announce support of a treaty to establish the gene pool as a global commons - Biotech activists to challenge government and corporate claims on patents on life - Treaty to be centerpiece of international campaigns around the world (press statement by various NGOs at World Social Forum, Focus on the Global South website, 1 Feb. 2002)
Greenwash + 10: The UN's Global Compact, Corporate Accountability and the Johannesburg Earth Summit [includes references to Aventis] (Kenny Bruno, CorpWatch, 24 Jan. 2002)
USDA [U.S. Department of Agriculture], soybean groups study new China GMO [genetically modified organisms] rules (Reuters, 8 Jan. 2002)
2001:
U.N. Panel Backs Cloning Measure: A key U.N. committee backed a resolution Monday calling for a global treaty to ban human cloning. The initiative by France and Germany for an international pact to outlaw the procedure, which they say is unacceptable and incompatible with human dignity, won endorsement from the General Assembly's legal committee. (Gerald Nadler, Associated Press, 19 Nov. 2001)
Do patents threaten food security? Global food security is under threat from "bio-pirates" who take plants from developing countries, change them slightly then patent the new varieties, according to anti-poverty groups and activists (Karen Iley, Reuters, 15 Nov. 2001)
Scientist sees hope for Africa in GM crops: African farmers waging the age-old battle against pests and crop disease are not nearly as well-armed as their counterparts in Europe and North America. But biotechnology could provide them with powerful tools to help feed a growing population and reduce hunger, Kenyan plant scientist Florence Wambugu said...Wambugu dismissed the idea that biotechnology companies are forcing GM crops on Africa. But she said that adoption of biotech crops in Africa will be a long, slow process. (Julie Ingwersen, Reuters, 15 Nov. 2001)
World's worst diseases face new foe - biotechnology: Genetic engineering, often slammed by environmental and consumer groups for its role in altering staple foods, may have found a niche where it can help save the lives of millions from the world's most endemic diseases. (Jeremy Smith, Reuters, 12 Nov. 2001)
US Government's $2.5 Million Biopiracy Project in Mexico Cancelled: Victory for Indigenous Peoples in Chiapas [regarding US government-funded ICBG-Maya project aimed at the bioprospecting of Mayan medicinal plants and traditional knowledge] (ETCGroup.org, 9 Nov. 2001)
GMO crops - here to stay or gone with the wind? Consumer pressure will not force North and South American farmers to abandon genetically modified crops but it could blight the development of a new generation promising many medical or nutritional benefits. (Peter Bohan, Reuters, 6 Nov. 2001)
U.S. EPA Renews Approval for Bt Corn - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has extended approval for genetically modified Bt corn for an additional seven years, the agency said Tuesday. The decision was applauded by the biotechnology industry, but roundly criticized by environmental and consumer groups. (Cat Lazaroff, Environment News Service, 18 Oct. 2001)
Novartis finds GMO soy in Philippines baby food: Swiss healthcare group Novartis AG confirmed yesterday allegations from environmental group Greenpeace that some samples of baby food it sold in the Philippines contained genetically modified soy. Novartis stressed the products were safe but added that it was seeking a new supplier. (Reuters, 5 Oct. 2001)
US work on jasmine rice causes worry [Thailand]: Chucheep says local market is still safe - A Thai biodiversity advocate has warned about possible economic loss to Thai farmers if a new variety of jasmine rice being developed in the US becomes successful and receives a patent. (Kultida Samabuddhi, Bangkok Post, 4 Oct. 2001)
Biodiversity Rights Legislation (BRL): Biodiversity Rights Legislation (BRL) is a collection of public legal documents -- laws, bills and other legislative proposals...BRL contains the full texts or the Internet addresses (URLs) of emerging laws and policies that affect peoples' control over agricultural biodiversity in developing countries. (GRAIN [Genetic Resources Action International], Oct. 2001)
Patenting GMOs - a difficult question of balance: Patenting living organisms - a means to create unfair profit potential for the rich or an efficient way of encouraging new technologies to conserve dwindling natural resources and promote world food security? Those are just two sides of the debate over the complex and sensitive issue of slapping intellectual property protection on living forms, including genetically-modified organisms (GMOs). (Karen Iley, Reuters, 25 Sep. 2001)
Greenpeace condemns European patent for GM fish: Ecologist group Greenpeace has condemned the granting of a European patent for a genetic tweak that can make salmon grow eight times larger than normal. Greenpeace France said the Munich-based European Patent Office (EPO) granted Canadian company Seabright Corporation a patent for a genetically modified Atlantic salmon and all other fish species carrying an additional gene for faster growth. (Reuters, 12 Sep. 2001)
Court to decide on herbicide: GM [genetically-modified food] multinational Aventis yesterday went to the [United Kingdom] high court to try to stop the government releasing information on the health effects of one of its herbicides to Friends of the Earth. (Guardian [UK], 8 Sep. 2001)
Greenpeace urges the European Commission to stop import of Monsanto's genetically modified "RR" soya (Greenpeace, 6 Sep. 2001)
Feeding prejudice: With hunger and malnourishment set to spread, it's vital that we stop demonising GM food (Johnjoe McFadden, Professor of Molecular Genetics at the University of Surrey, Guardian [UK], 29 Aug. 2001)
Food fights can't feed the hungry: Beneath the debate in industrialized nations over biotechnology foods lies a tragic irony: Those who have the most may deny this promising technology to those who need it most. That is the conclusion of a recent United Nations report warning that the world's poorest cannot afford for its richest to stall biotechnology on the basis of scientifically unfounded fears. Without biotechnology, the UN's Human Development 2001 report says, developing nations may be unable to feed their rapidy expanding populations. So it is sad - and potentially dangerous - that, in the report's words, the debate in the West ''mostly ignores the concerns and needs of the developing world.'' (Hans Kornberg [Professor of Biology at Boston University and former chair of the United Kingdom's Advisory Committee on Genetic Modification], in Boston Globe, 21 Aug. 2001)
Mystery gene in soybeans heats GMO debate: Fresh controversy erupted last week after scientists discovered unidentified fragments of DNA in gene-altered soybeans, jolting grain markets and heating up a simmering debate about genetically modified organisms (GMOs). (K.T. Arasu, Reuters, 20 Aug. 2001)
New study reveals unknown DNA in Monsanto's "Roundup Ready" soya: The environmental group,Greenpeace, today sounded the alarm about new information published by a team of Belgian scientists in the European Journal of Food Research Technology. (Greenpeace, 15 Aug. 2001)
company website: Belgian Scientist Says Gene-spliced Soy Safe (Monsanto, 16 Aug. 2001)
NZ GMO report pits Australian industry vs consumers: A New Zealand government inquiry which urged the South Pacific nation not to reject genetically modified (GM) foods was welcomed by the Australian food industry yesterday but slammed by consumer activists. A Royal Commission, the most far-reaching investigation a New Zealand government can order, on Monday rejected the idea of a GM-free country by recommending loosened curbs on low-risk GM applications while calling for rigorous case-by-case testing. (Reuters, 1 Aug. 2001)
DEVELOPMENT-NEW ZEALAND: Critics up in Arms over Approval of GMOs: Critics are up in arms over this week's report by a New Zealand royal commission, which has rejected overwhelming community and Maori opposition to the further development and use of genetically modified organisms. (Bob Burton, Inter Press Service, 31 July 2001)
US science panel rejects StarLink in human food: A science advisory panel last week urged the Environmental Protection Agency to maintain its ban on StarLink biotech corn in human food, saying too many questions remain about whether the gene-spliced corn can cause rashes, breathing problems or other allergic reactions. (Julie Vorman, Reuters, 30 July 2001)
press release: "TRIPS-plus" treaties leave WTO in the dust: A report published today by Genetic Resources Action International (GRAIN) shows the extent to which industrialised countries are using bilateral treaties to secure ever stronger monopoly rights on biodiversity in developing countries. (GRAIN, 27 July 2001)
Consumers ask Asia to adopt tough EU GMO rules: The European Union's new rules on food derived from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are likely to spur Asian consumers to ask their governments for tougher safeguards against GMOs, analysts said yesterday. (Jae Hur, Reuters, 27 July 2001)
GENETIC TECHNOLOGY: Action sought on abuse of patent rights - Developing nations at a disadvantage in field research while rich countries profit unfairly, meeting concludes. Citing their comparative disadvantage in the advancement of genetic technology to improve health matters, developing nations are demanding a mechanism to prevent the abuse of intellectual property rights for commercial gain related to the technology. (Pennapa Hongthong, The Nation [Bangkok], 26 July 2001)
HUMAN GENOME: Warning on gene therapy - Social causes must not be overlooked - Public health policy-makers should not rely too heavily on gene therapy to help cure diseases, warned a British molecular biologist....Many "incurable" diseases resulted from toxicity from pesticides and chemical use, not only from genetic impairment. (Anchalee Kongrut, Bangkok Post, 25 July 2001)
Genome hope for tropical diseases: Scientists and sociologists from developing countries attending a World Health Organisation (WHO) forum here have identified an opportunity in genetic research to get rid of tropical diseases, but they also want to bring an end to corporate control of the technology. (Nantiya Tangwisutijit and Pennapa Hongthong, The Nation [Bangkok], 24 July 2001)
Bangkok conference on GMOs [genetically-modified organisms] endorses consumers right to know: The rights of consumers are supreme and must be respected. Consumers have an absolute right to know what is in the food they consume stated Suwit Khunkitti, Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand at the OECD Conference on Biotechnology in Bangkok. (Consumers International, 12 July 2001)
New Biotechnology Foods and Crops: Science, Safety and Society - Bangkok Conference, 10-12 July 2001 (OECD [Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development])
report: Human Development Report 2001: Making new technologies work for human development (U.N. Development Programme, 10 July 2001)
press release: New technologies key to reducing world poverty: [T]his year's Human Development Report, commissioned by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and released today, argues that information and communications technology and biotechnology can actually make major contributions to reducing world poverty. UNDP Administrator Mark Malloch Brown warns, "Ignoring technological breakthroughs in medicine, agri-culture and information will mean missing opportunities to transform the lives of poor people." (U.N. Development Programme, 10 July 2001)
World guideline for pre-market GM testing agreed: Agreement has been reached on the first global guidelines requiring countries to test the safety of genetically modified (GM) foods before they come on the market, the Codex Alimentarius Commission said on Friday. (Stephanie Nebehay, Reuters, 9 July 2001)
Treaty to protect world's major food crops agreed, but NGOs criticise 'right to patent genes': Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) immediately criticised the weakened text for enshrining OECD countries' priority to support private profit rather than food security, and for subordinating this environmental treaty to the trade rules of the WTO - including its contentious agreement on intellectual property rights (TRIPs). (Intermediate Technology Development Group, 2 July 2001)
FAO [UN Food and Agriculture Organization] Agreement Reached On Seed Banks (UN Wire, 2 July 2001)
Sowing Technology: The ecological argument against genetic engineering down on the farm (Craig Holdrege and Steve Talbott, Sierra Magazine, Sierra Club, July/Aug. 2001)
Spinning Science into GOLD: In the pursuit of profit, the biotech industry is manipulating more than genes (Karen Charman, Sierra Magazine, Sierra Club, July/Aug. 2001)
A Nation of Lab Rats: Is genetically engineered food bad for you? Maybe. Maybe not. (Barbara Keeler, Sierra Magazine, Sierra Club, July/Aug. 2001)
GM food link to humans is ruled out: An analysis of the human genetic code that suggested genes could be passed from bacteria or genetically modified food to people is overturned by a study published last week. (Roger Highfield, Daily Telegraph [UK], 28 June 2001)
US warning on GM crops: A leading American farming association is warning Australia about the negative effects of genetically modified crops. Chief Executive Officer of the American Corn Growers Association (ACGA), Gary Goldberg, is urging Australian farmers to be careful, saying the US has lost millions of dollars in export and compromised the "integrity" of its crops as a result of using Genetically Modified Organisms. (Nabila Ahmed, The Age [Melbourne], 27 June 2001)
Seed patents needed to boost research - industry: Seed patents, which some critics attack as harmful to poor farmers, are a vital incentive for research and a means of encouraging plant diversity, a life sciences industry official said yesterday. (David Brough, Reuters, 27 June 2001)
Green groups say seed patents menace food security: Environment groups said yesterday the patenting of food and seeds by multinational companies threatened food security and access by farmers to vital genetic resources. (David Brough, Reuters, 26 June 2001)
BIOPIRACY: Conference Blasts US For Profiting From Asian Resources (UN Wire, 21 June 2001)
Toxic Drift: Monsanto and the Drug War in Colombia - The U.S. sprays tons of Monsanto's herbicide, Roundup, in Colombia as part of the drug war. Local residents say it makes them sick and destroys their crops. (Jeremy Bigwood, CorpWatch, 21 June 2001)
Argentine farmers bet on biotech [While proponents say GM products increase efficiency, environmental and consumer groups say the products are not well regulated and could contain hidden health and environmental risks] (Athena Jones, Reuters, 15 June 2001)
Green groups reject US govt report on StarLink bio-corn (Randy Fabi, Reuters, 15 June 2001)
Maker of suspect corn seed accused of breaking UN pact - Consumer and agricultural watchdog groups yesterday accused a multinational corporation that produces genetically modified foods of failing to uphold a UN code of business conduct to which it had agreed. The advocates called on the United Nations to consider ejecting the company, Strasbourg-based Aventis S.A., from its Global Compact - a group of corporations that pledged to abide by human rights and environmental norms less than a year ago. (Elizabeth Neuffer, Boston Globe, 15 June 2001)
Aventis: Global Compact Violator - Since Aventis signed on to the Global Compact in July 2000, their genetically engineered StarLinkTM corn has illegally contaminated the food supply and seed stock. A look at the company's behavior regarding StarLink shows that before, during and after signing the Compact, Aventis violated Global Compact's Principle 7, which is drawn from the Rio Declaration and supports "a precautionary approach to environmental challenges." (Gabriela Flora, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, on CorpWatch website, 14 June 2001)
Greenpeace applauds the Chinese Government on tightening control over genetically modified organisms (Greenpeace, 7 June 2001)
GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS: Agriculture keen on GE field trials - Genetic technology 'cannot be ignored' [Thailand] (Ploenpote Atthakor, Bangkok Post, 6 June 2001)
Biodiversity (briefing paper for World Summit on Sustainable Development, published by IIED [International Institute for Environment and Development] and RING [Regional and International Networking Group], June 2001)
Greenpeace and Miseror [the German Catholic Church development agency] challenge DuPont biopiracy patent (Greenpeace/Miseror, 29 May 2001)
HK activists block Nestle plant in GM food protest (Chee-may Chow, Reuters, 29 May 2001)
Japan food recall revives StarLink biotech scare (Jae Hur, Reuters, 28 May 2001)
Biotech to drive chemicals sales, report [by McKinsey & Co.] says (Reuters, 23 May 2001)
Genetic Modification: Greenpeace praises tofu firm for GMO tests of ingredients - Its product among those exposed earlier [Thailand] (Ploenpote Atthakor, Bangkok Post, 18 May 2001)
Lifting the Veil of Secrecy: New Website Discloses Scientists’ Links to Industry: The nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) today launched an Internet site to provide information about the links between hundreds of scientists — mostly in the fields of nutrition, environment, toxicology, and medicine — and corporations. (Center for Science in the Public Interest, 17 May 2001)
Worldwide initiatives against GMOs [genetically modified organisms] (Third World Network, 16 May 2001)
Protecting the traditional knowledge of the poor nations: The world’s Least Developed Countries (LDCs) no longer have to sit back and see their traditional knowledge, folklore and genetic resources robbed by global players in possession of the most modern know-how and financial muscle. This is at least what Roberto Castelo, deputy director-general of the Geneva-based World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), says. (Ramesh Jaura, Inter Press Service, 16 May 2001)
Read the label: China passes regs requiring food products to list genetic alterations (China Online, 15 May 2001)
Monsanto denies sale of illegal seed [Argentina] (Reuters, 11 May 2001)
Illegal genetically engineered corn from Monsanto detected in Argentina (Greenpeace, 11 May 2001)
Legal petition against 5 US agencies aims to stop world's first GE [genetically-engineered] fish release (Greenpeace, 9 May 2001)
GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD: Farmers told to expect tough patent laws in the future: Strong trade barriers also on the cards [Thailand] (Ranjana Wangvipula, Bangkok Post, 6 May 2001)
GM [genetically-modified crop] trial 'threatens organic centre' [UK] (BBC News, 6 May 2001)
New study finds Monsanto soya means more pesticides in the environment (Greenpeace, 4 May 2001)
"GMOs [genetically-modified organisms] can be used for good and for bad," Jacques Diouf says: FAO Director-General unveils two new publications, the first in a series on ethics in food and agriculture (UN Food and Agriculture Organization, 3 May 2001)
Minister [UK Environment Minister] to tackle GM [genetically-modified crop] firm over trials (BBC News, 3 May 2001)
Environmentalists to join regulators [on Thailand's panel charged with regulating field trials of genetically modified crops] (Bangkok Post, 3 May 2001)
Food labelling may not be enough [to protect consumers from genetically modified food], says Greenpeace: Group launches consumer guide [Thailand] (Kultida Samabuddhi, Bangkok Post, 3 May 2001)
Monsanto executive named for senior EPA [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency] job (Reuters, 2 May 2001)
Thailand bans the release of genetically engineered crops into the environment (Greenpeace, 6 Apr. 2001)
Patents and Development: What Role for the World Community? (Dr. Christopher Stevens, Institute of Development Studies, 4 Apr. 2001)
Values in a Global Context: The Novo Group Environmental and Social Report 2000 (Novo Group, 30 Mar. 2001)
Annan Urges Businesses To Do More in Health Sector (UN Wire, 29 Mar. 2001)
Commissioner [European Commissioner for Trade] Defends TRIPS but Acknowledges NGO Concerns (EuropaWorld, 23 Mar. 2001)
Poisoned By PCBs: Thirty Years Later, Court Documents Reveal Monsanto's Toll on an Alabama Town (Chemical Industry Archives - a project of Environmental Working Group, Mar. 2001)
FDA announces proposal and draft guidance for food developed through biotechnology (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 17 Jan. 2001)
2000:
Integrating Public Health Concerns into Patent Legislation in Developing Countries (Carlos Correa, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 2000)
TRIPS and pharmaceuticals: A case of corporate profits over public health (Cecilia Oh, Third World Network, 30 Sep. 2000)
Enough Food for the Whole World (Anuradha Mittal, Co-Director Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy, in Washington Post, 15 Sep. 2000)
We'll Feed Our People As We See Fit (Hassan Adamu, Nigeria's minister of agricultural and rural development, in Washington Post, 11 Sep. 2000)
Biotechnology, Ethics & The Future: Bioethicist Arthur Caplan Talks With CBS News (CBS News, 13 May 2000)
GM Food Safety: Facts, Uncertainties, and Assessment: The OECD Edinburgh Conference on the Scientific and Health Aspects of Genetically Modified Foods (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Feb.-Mar. 2000)
Biosafety Protocol Agreed (Friends of the Earth, 29 Jan. 2000)
Biotechnology and Indigenous Peoples (Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Jan. 2000, to appear in Brian Tokar [ed.], Redesigning Life [London: Zed Books Ltd, forthcoming])
1999:
Impacts of WTO On The Environment, Cultures and Indigenous Peoples (Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, Director of Tebtebba Foundation [Indigenous Peoples' International Centre for Policy Research and Education] and Convenor of Asia Indigenous Women's Network, 29 Nov. 1999)
Human Rights Issues in Biotechnology (Ami S. Jaeger, BioLaw Group, 31 Jan. 1999)
The World's Indigenous Peoples (Russel Barsh, White Paper commissioned by Calvert Group Funds, 1999)
1998:
Kerala Tribe Accuses Indian Biologists of Stealing Knowledge [India] (J. John and Sindhu Menon, Panos, 6 Aug. 1998)
1997:
INDIA-TRADE: Bio-Piracy Campaign Exposes Holes in U.S. Patent Laws (Bijoy Basant Patro, Inter Press Service, 4 Sep. 1997)
1996:
Biotechnology and Ethics: A Blueprint for the Future (National Science Foundation [USA], Jan. 1996)