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Monday, August 30, 2010

Vaccine Zombie

Vaccine Zombie By Mike Adams

Friday, August 20, 2010

Dysautonomia

This is copied straight for the Dyna kids website

Dysautonomia is a medical term often utilized for a group of complex conditions that are caused by a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The ANS regulates all of the unconscious functions of the body, including the cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal system, metabolic system, and endocrine system. A dysfunction of the ANS can cause debilitating symptoms and may pose significant challenges for effective medical treatment.
Orthostatic intolerance (the inability to remain upright) is a hallmark of the various forms of dysautonomia. Dysautonomia conditions can range from mild to debilitating and, on rare occasions, can be life threatening. Each dysautonomia case is unique and treatment must be individualized and may include pharmacological and non-pharmacological methods. Patients should be evaluated by a physician who is well-versed in the recent treatment modalities.

Childhood dysautonomia conditions typically (but not always) strike adolescents, often after a period of very rapid growth. There is a female to male ratio of 5 to 1. Some patients report a sudden development of symptoms after a viral illness, immunization, or trauma. Others may see a more gradual onset. Although very rare, there are children born with life threatening non-familial forms of dysautonomia. There is also a distinctive form of dysautonomia called Familial Dysautonomia (FD) that has been identified in individuals of Ashkenazi Jewish extraction.

The symptoms of dysautonomia conditions are usually "invisible" to the untrained eye. The afflicted child may visually appear to be as healthy as those around him. The manifestations are occurring internally, and although the symptoms are verified medically they are often not visible on the outside. Symptoms can be unpredictable, may come and go, appear in any combination, and may vary in severity. Often patients will become more symptomatic after a stressor or a physical activity. Patients may find themselves involuntarily limiting their life-style activities in order to compensate for the conditions.

Dysautonomia conditions are widely unknown to society at large. As a result, most people do not realize the impact such conditions have on those afflicted and their families. Children who have dysautonomia struggle with some of the most basic functions that healthy people take for granted, beginning with getting out of bed in the morning. Each day and each moment brings new and unexpected obstacles. Yet, despite the betrayal of an uncooperative body, these young individuals face life with profound courage and incredible strength.

Symptoms of dysautonomia may include: Tachycardia (extremely fast heart rate), bradycardia (slow heart rate), palpitations, chest pain, dangerously low blood pressure, wide swings/sudden drops in blood pressure, orthostatic intolerance (the inability to remain upright), excessive fatigue, exercise intolerance, dizziness, fainting/near fainting, gastrointestinal problems, nausea, insomnia, shortness of breath, anxiety, tremulousness, frequent urination, convulsions, cognitive impairment, visual blurring or tunneling, and migraines.

Most of our DYNA members are diagnosed with conditions such as: Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), Neurally Mediated Hypotension (NMH), Neurocardiogenic Syncope (NCS), Vasovagal Syncope, Generalized Dysautonomia, Birth Dysautonomia, Non-Familial Dysautonomia, and Post-Viral Dysautonomia. There is also a distinctive form of dysautonomia called Familial Dysautonomia (FD). Familial Dysautonomia has been identified in individuals of Ashkenazi Jewish extraction and has wonderful organizations directed towards serving the children afflicted with it.

For More information see below.

Dysautonomia Youth Network of America

More information from other websites:
Disautonomia symptoms
http://heartdisease.about.com/cs/womensissues/a/dysautonomia.htm

http://ezinearticles.com/?Dysautonomia---Symptoms-And-Treatment&id=1200367

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Resveratrol.. Helping to Loose Weight!

(NaturalNews) Wednesday, July 21, 2010 by: S. L. Baker, features writer:

Resveratrol is a type of phytonutrient known as a polyphenol. Found in the skin of grapes, wine, grape juice, peanuts, and berries, it has often been hailed as a life-extending natural compound. After all, research in mice and lab rats has indicated it can protect those animals from obesity and diabetes and has anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and blood-sugar-lowering effects, too. However, rats and mice are rodents -- and their physiology is in many ways different from the primate family that includes apes, monkeys and, most importantly, human beings.

But now for the first time a study has shown resveratrol has the ability to rev up metabolism and spark weight loss in primates -- and that means the polyphenol might have weight loss and even anti-aging and life-extending benefits in people, too.

Fabienne Aujard, from the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique in Paris, France, worked with a team of scientists to document how a diet supplemented with resveratrol impacted the weight, metabolism and energy intake of six mouse lemurs. (Despite their names, mouse lemurs have nothing to do with rodents. Found only on the African island nation of Madagascar, they are mouse-sized primates -- the group that includes apes and humans.)

Wednesday, July 21, 2010 by: S. L. Baker, Natural News features writer:

he study, which was just published in the BMC Physiology journal, showed that after four weeks of resveratrol supplementation there was a significant decrease in the animals' food intake along with a reduction in the body-mass gain lemurs normally experience in winter. The response to the resveratrol supplementation also involved significant changes in the animals' body temperatures. The researchers noted that resveratrol appears to reduce weight by increasing satiety (the feeling of being full) and also by increasing the resting metabolic rate (the amount of energy expended while at rest) -- so the animals burned up more calories even when not exercising.

"We've found that lemurs eating a diet supplemented with the compound (resveratrol) decreased their energy intake by 13 percent and increased their resting metabolic rate by 29 percent," Dr. Aujard said in a statement to the press. "These results provide novel information on the potential effects of resveratrol on energy metabolism and control of body mass in a primate. The physiological benefits of resveratrol are currently under intensive investigation, with recent work suggesting that it could be a good candidate for the development of obesity therapies."
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Wednesday, July 14, 2010

FRUIT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FOOD

By, Dr Stephen Mak:
EATING FRUIT...
We all think eating fruits means just buying fruits, cutting it and just popping it into our mouths. It's not as easy as you think. It's important to know how and when to eat. What is the correct way of eating fruits? IT MEANS NOT EATING FRUITS AFTER YOUR MEALS! * FRUITS SHOULD BE EATEN ON AN EMPTY STOMACH. If you eat fruit like that, it will play a major role to detoxify your system, supplying you with a great deal of energy for weight loss and other life activities. FRUIT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FOOD.Let's say you eat two slices of bread and then a slice of fruit. The slice of fruit is ready to go straight through the stomach into the intestines, but it is prevented from doing so. In the meantime the whole meal rots and ferments and turns to acid. The minute the fruit comes into contact with the food in the stomach and digestive juices, the entire mass of food begins to spoil.... So please eat your fruits on an empty stomach or before your meals! You have heard people complaining — every time I eat watermelon I burp, when I eat durian my stomach bloats up, when I eat a banana I feel like running to the toilet, etc — actually all this will not arise if you eat the fruit on an empty stomach. The fruit mixes with the putrefying other food and produces gas and hence you will bloat! Graying hair, balding, nervous outburst, and dark circles under the eyes all these will NOT happen if you take fruits on an empty stomach. There is no such thing as some fruits, like orange and lemon are acidic, because all fruits become alkaline in our body, according to Dr. Herbert Shelton who did research on this matter. If you have mastered the correct way of eating fruits, you have the Secret of beauty, longevity, health, energy, happiness and normal weight. When you need to drink fruit juice - drink only fresh fruit juice, NOT from the cans. Don't even drink juice that has been heated up. Don't eat cooked fruits because you don't get the nutrients at all. You only get to taste. Cooking destroys all the vitamins. But eating a whole fruit is better than drinking the juice. If you should drink the juice, drink it mouthful by mouthful slowly, because you must let it mix with your saliva before swallowing it. You can go on a 3-day fruit fast to cleanse your body. Just eat fruits and drink fruit juice throughout the 3 days and you will be surprised when your friends tell you how radiant you look! KIWI: Tiny but mighty. This is a good source of potassium, magnesium, vitamin E & fiber. Its vitamin C content is twice that of an orange. APPLE: An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Although an apple has a low vitamin C content, it has antioxidants & flavonoids which enhances the activity of vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer, heart attack & stroke.


STRAWBERRY: Protective Fruit. Strawberries have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits & protect the body from cancer-causing, blood vessel-clogging free radicals. ORANGE : Sweetest medicine. Taking 2-4 oranges a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessens the risk of colon cancer.


WATERMELON: Coolest thirst quencher. Composed of 92% water, it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione, which helps boost our immune system. They are also a key source of lycopene — the cancer fighting oxidant. Other nutrients found in watermelon are vitamin C & Potassium.


GUAVA & PAPAYA: Top awards for vitamin C. They are the clear winners for their high vitamin C content.. Guava is also rich in fiber, which helps prevent constipation. Papaya is rich in carotene; this is good for your eyes.


Drinking COLD water after a meal = Cancer! Can u believe this?? For those who like to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you. It is nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion. Once this 'sludge' reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.


By own 2 Sense:
I have been eating fruit this way since 1980..and I wouldnt have it any other way.. also you can add tomatoes all squashes and cucumbers and lemons to the list of fruit. and dont forget about all the berries...
technically they are fruits
also to add just my own and other Dr.s info dont mix bananas with any fruit or any other food. I hardley ever eat bananas anymore but thats me.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

One of the Biggest Health Frauds EVER Perpetrated on the American People…

According to BBC News:
“The fluoride in the ash creates acid in the animals' stomachs, corroding the intestines and causing hemorrhages. It also binds with calcium in the bloodstream and after heavy exposure over a period of days makes bones frail, even causing teeth to crumble.”


By Dr. Mercola:

Many may see this story and never connect the dots between the tragic poisoning of these animals due to a natural event, and the intentional poisoning of human beings through excessive fluoride exposure each and every day.
This story is another clue that just because something exists in nature doesn't necessarily mean it is good for you. And this is certainly true for the seriously misguided use of fluoride to prevent dental cavities.
The practice of adding fluoride to your tap water began in 1945. With more than 60 percent of U.S. water supplies currently fluoridated, chances are you’re one of the 170 million Americans who drink fluoride on a daily basis.
Most likely, your dentist – along with countless government and public health officials -- has praised and promoted the use of fluoride, both in toothpaste and drinking water, as one of your must-do regimens to promote strong and healthy teeth.
Unfortunately, they’ve all bought the public deception, and have unwittingly participated in and perpetuated perhaps one of the grandest public health frauds and toxic cover-ups in U.S. history.
Fluoride – A Historically Known Toxin
Prior to 1945 when communal water fluoridation took effect, fluoride was a known toxin.
For example, a 1936 issue of the Journal of the American Dental Association stated that fluoride at the 1 ppm (part per million) concentration is as toxic as arsenic and lead.
The Journal of the American Medical Association stated in their September 18, 1943 issue, that “fluorides are general protoplasmic poisons that change the permeability of the cell membrane by certain enzymes.” And, an editorial published in the Journal of the American Dental Association, October 1, 1944, stated,
"Drinking water containing as little as 1.2 ppm fluoride will cause developmental disturbances. We cannot run the risk of producing such serious systemic disturbances. The potentialities for harm outweigh those for good."
More recently, Christopher Bryson, award winning journalist and former producer at the BBC revealed the multi-tiered abuse of power by military and industry scientists and public health officials in his book The Fluoride Deception. In it, he describes the intertwined interests that existed in the 1940’s and 50’s between the aluminum industry, the U.S. nuclear weapons program, and the dental industry, which resulted in fluoride being declared not only safe, but “beneficial to human health.”
The political back story of how fluoride was introduced into your drinking water reads like a cross between a psychological thriller and mind-boggling science fiction.
Read Bryson’s book, and you’ll never think of fluoride the same again… Because the bottom line is that when you swallow fluoride, it does nothing to decrease disease, it merely accelerates it.
Do You Know What’s REALLY in Your Water?
What would you do if you suddenly found out that “fluoride,” which advocates claim is an all-natural element that you ingest anyway and is good for your teeth and bones, was not safe at all, but was actually a carcinogenic industrial waste?
That’s right! The fluoride in your water supply is not what you think it is.
The natural form of mineral fluoride found both in nature and in your teeth and bones, is called Apatite (calcium fluoro-chloro-hydroxyl phosphate).
Inside your mouth, there is a natural equilibrium between hydroxyl-apatite (calcium phosphate) dissolving and forming in your tooth enamel from substances occurring naturally in your saliva. Like everything else, your diet and various physical conditions shift this equilibrium back and forth constantly.
When you have more calcium phosphate dissolving than being adhered, you end up with a demineralization condition called caries. This is when cavities form in your teeth.
However, this has nothing to do with fluoride or fluoridation, but a good fib must always start with a kernel of truth, or else no one will listen to you.
So when it comes to the so-called “health benefits” of fluoride, it’s essential to understand what’s really being added to your water and other products you use on a regular basis, such as toothpaste.
When “fluoride” is added to your drinking water, it’s NOT the natural mineral. Instead, the fluoride in question is another chemical fluoride compound – the toxic waste product from phosphate fertilizer plants.
There are three basic compounds commonly used for fluoridating water supplies:
Sodium fluoride (NaF)
Sodium silicofluoride
Hydrofluorosilicic acid
The last two, sodium silicofluoride and hydrofluorosilicic acid, are the compounds used for water fluoridation, with hydrofluorosilicic acid being the most commonly used additive, according to the CDC.
These are chemical byproducts of aluminum, steel, cement, phosphate, and nuclear weapons manufacturing. Such fluoride is manmade, and in this form, fluoride has no nutrient value and no health benefits whatsoever.
But there’s yet another tidbit that is not talked about openly, and that is the fact that these hazardous industrial wastes – the fluoride compounds actually added to your water -- have NEVER been fully tested to ascertain their full potential health hazard.
Instead, the pharmaceutical grade “sodium fluoride” (the first one on the list) is used in the majority of studies evaluating the risk to human health.
Therefore, the real danger to your health may be far greater than any of the studies done so far have shown, and numerous studies have already identified the pharmaceutical grade sodium fluoride as a toxic agent, capable of doing irreparable harm to your body.
Fluoride May Actually CAUSE More Cavities Than it Prevents!
Studies have also shown that fluoride does not even help prevent cavities, which is the number one reason for water fluoridation in the first place.
Instead, studies have shown that consuming too much fluoride might actually cause tooth decay.
One such study, published in the September 2001 issue of International Journal of Pediatric Dentistry, found that South African children who drank water containing high levels of natural fluoride (3 ppm), had more tooth decay than children in other parts of South Africa who drank much lower concentrations (between 0.19 to 0.48 ppm).
And fluoride-saturated American teenagers had twice the rate of cavities as the South African children drinking low levels of natural fluoride!
The Many Health Dangers of Fluoride
According to information from its Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), and from the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the pharmaceutical grade sodium fluoride is a dangerous toxin that can cause serious physical harm.
The chemical targets your:
Kidneys
Heart
Gastrointestinal system
Bone and skeletal structures
Teeth
Nerves
The MSDS for sodium fluoride also states that fluoride compounds can induce:
Systemic toxic effects on your heart, liver, and kidney
Depleted calcium levels in your body leading to hypocalcaemia and death
It points out that the toxic effect of fluoride might be delayed, and that laboratory experiments have resulted in the development of tumors.
In order to understand the long-term dangers of fluoride, it’s important to realize that fluoride is a cumulative poison.
Ninety-eight percent of the fluoride you ingest in water is absorbed into your blood through your gastrointestinal tract. From there, it enters your body’s cellular tissues. On average, about 50 percent of the fluoride you ingest each day gets excreted through your kidneys. The remainder accumulates in your teeth and bones, pineal gland, and other tissues, such as the aorta.
The amount deposited into your bones and teeth varies depending on your age. In children, more than 50 percent of an ingested dose of fluoride is deposited in bone, but in adults only about 10 percent is stored there.
As with teeth, fluoride is deposited in bone by the ionic exchange with hydroxyl-apatite as mentioned earlier. It does dissolve from bone as well, but at a slower rate than it is deposited, so if your intake remains constant, the level of fluoride in your bones increases linearly with age.
Therefore, if your kidneys are damaged, fluoride accumulation will increase, and with it, the likelihood of harm.
There are numerous health problems associated with the accumulation of fluoride in your body, such as:
Hyperactivity and/or lethargy
Arthritis
Dental fluorosis (staining and pitting of teeth)
Lowered thyroid function
Lowered IQ, and dementia
Disrupted immune system
Fluoride also causes genetic damage and cell death, inactivates at least 62 enzymes in your body, and accelerates the aging process.
Overdosing is Easy
When water fluoridation first began, the “optimal” level of fluoride for dental benefit was said to be 1 mg/day for an adult male, based on the estimate that the average adult male drank one liter of water per day. However, even at that level, 10 percent of the population (those in the high-risk group) was expected to get fluorosis.
But water is not the only source of added fluoride.
Although you may not know it, you are exposed to fluoride from many sources other than the obvious lineup of toothpastes and mouth rinses.
Far less obvious sources of fluoride include:
Food and beverages processed with fluoridated water
Mechanically de-boned meat
Pesticide residue on food
Pharmaceutical drugs, especially SSRI antidepressants and fluoroquinolone antibiotics like Cipro
Soy baby formulas
Instant tea
A 1991 review by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services shows just how drastic your overexposure might be when taking multiple sources into account.
Fluoride exposure levels for a 110-pound adult from food, beverages, toothpaste, and mouthwash
Fluoride Concentration
in Drinking Water
Total Fluoride Intake
Percentage Over 1 mg
"Optimal" Dosage
Unfluoridated Communities
< 0.3 mg/L 0.88 - 2.20 mg/day as much as 120 % "Optimally" Fluoridated 0.7-1.2 mg/L 1.58 - 6.60 mg/day as much as 560 % Fluoridated communities > 2.0 mg/L
2.10 - 7.05 mg/day
possible > 605 %
If you were to evaluate all the sources of fluoride you’re exposed to on a regular basis, you may be shocked by how much fluoride you and your children are actually ingesting.
Diet, Not Fluoride Builds Healthy Teeth
If you’re wondering how to keep your teeth healthy, remember that fluoride was never the answer in the first place.
Instead, you need to look to your diet if you want healthy teeth. In fact, most people whose diet includes very little sugar and few processed foods have very low rates of tooth decay.
Limiting or eliminating sugar, and avoiding processed foods and eating plenty of green vegetables and vitamin K2 -- along with regular cleanings with your natural dentist – is the best way to ensure your teeth stay healthy naturally.
Further Education
I strongly advise you to continue educating yourself about fluoride and to avoid it as much as you can.
The Fluoride Action Network is a phenomenal resource for further education, and they’re doing much to pressure the US government for change. Their Statement asking Congress to end water fluoridation in the United States has now been signed by over 2,750 professionals.
There are also a number of books on the subject that are well worth reading, including:
The Fluoride Deception by Christopher Bryson
Health Effects of Ingested Fluoride by Bernard Meyer Wagner
Fluoridation: the Great Dilemma by George L. Waldbott
Fluoride the Aging Factor : How to Recognize and Avoid the Devastating Effects of Fluoride by Dr. John Yiamouyiannis
Scientific Knowledge in Controversy: The Social Dynamics of the Fluoridation Debate by Brian Martin.
The Grim Truth About Fluoridation by Robert M. Buck

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Monsanto 7-State Probe Threatens Profit From 93% Soybean Share

Monsanto 7-State Probe Threatens Profit From 93% Soybean Share
March 10, 2010, 1:22 AM EST


By Alison Fitzgerald

March 10 (Bloomberg) -- At least seven U.S. state attorneys general are investigating whether Monsanto Co., the world’s largest seed producer, has abused its market power to lock out competitors and raise prices.
Iowa and Illinois, whose antitrust probes Monsanto disclosed previously, have joined with Ohio, Texas, Virginia and two other states in a working group coordinating the inquiries, according to investigators, farmers and seed dealers. They declined to identify the sixth and seventh states.
The state investigations add to pressure on Monsanto over allegations of abusive competitive tactics. The U.S. Justice Department is probing the company’s marketing practices, and DuPont Co. has accused its rival in licensing litigation of anti-competitive actions. At stake are the costs to farmers who produce $80.3 billion a year in corn and soybeans, used in products ranging from Coca-Cola to cattle feed to ethanol.
“Monsanto has become such a dominant player in the seed business that producers have real concerns that the price they pay for seed is going to be anywhere near reasonable,” said John Crabtree, a spokesman for the Center for Rural Affairs in Lyons, Nebraska, a nonprofit group that provides services to farm communities. “The fear is that the sky’s the limit.”
Monsanto rose to dominance via its genetically engineered Roundup Ready seed line, which was in 93 percent of the soybeans and 82 percent of the corn produced in the U.S. last year. The gene Monsanto adds to the seeds allows crops to withstand use of its Roundup weed killer.
Rebates, Incentives
The states are probing whether Monsanto violated any laws by offering rebates to distributors for excluding rival seeds, imposing limits on combining the product with other genetic enhancements, or offering cash incentives to switch farmers to a more-expensive generation of seeds, according to one person involved in the probe who asked not to be named because he isn’t authorized to discuss it.
The five states known to be part of the inquiry accounted for almost 39%, or $31 billion, of U.S. corn and soybeans last year, based on U.S. Department of Agriculture data. A state- level investigation, on top of the federal one, “can lengthen the lawsuit and potential settlements, and it can increase uncertainty and costs for Monsanto,” said Daniel Sokol, a law professor at the University of Florida in Gainesville who edits a blog on antitrust and competition policy.
Monsanto Vice President Jim Tobin will address the concerns at a hearing March 12 in Ankeny, Iowa, where the U.S. Justice and Agriculture departments are holding a workshop on seed- industry competition. It’s the first of a series of sessions the agencies are sponsoring to examine whether consolidation in agriculture is harming competition.
‘Unsubstantiated Allegations’
“There have been unsubstantiated allegations of a lack of competition in the seed market for several years now,” said Kelli Powers, a spokeswoman for St. Louis-based Monsanto. “We’re confident an objective review will reveal competition is alive and flourishing in the seed market.” Monsanto has a “broad licensing approach that is “in fact pro-competitive,” she said.
“We produced millions of pages of documents” for the state working group, said Scott Partridge, a Monsanto attorney, in an interview. “For about a year now they haven’t had any more questions.” Seed producers and dealers say the state group has spoken to them as recently as December about their Monsanto licensing agreements.
The rebates investigators are exploring in the Monsanto case are similar to incentives that have figured in past antitrust inquiries that led to settlements, said Herb Hovenkamp a professor at the University of Iowa Law School in Iowa City and the author of “Antitrust Law,” a 23-volume text.
FTC Sues Intel
The Federal Trade Commission sued Intel Corp. in December alleging it used “threats and rewards,” including rebates, to coerce companies not to buy rivals’ computer chips. In a separate civil dispute, Intel agreed in November, without admitting any liability or fault, to pay $1.25 billion to Advanced Micro Devices Inc. to settle allegations Intel gave discounts to customers that avoided AMD products.
Courts disagree on whether such financial incentives are anti-competitive, Hovenkamp said.
“These things have been so controversial and so heavily litigated that some firms have taken preventative steps and just gotten rid of them,” Hovenkamp said.
Monsanto phased out its market-share discounts as of last year, said Powers, the spokeswoman.
Of Monsanto’s $11.7 billion in revenue in the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2009, $7.3 billion came from sales and licensing of seeds and seed genes. Revenue grew by an annual average of 17% from 2004 to 2009, as earnings expanded eight-fold to $2.11 billion, driven by genetically engineered products and acquisitions of other seed companies.
Generic Roundup
Revenue then declined as generic rivals to Roundup flooded into the U.S. from China. In the fiscal first quarter ended Nov. 30, Monsanto had a loss of $19 million as sales declined 36% to $1.70 billion.
Monsanto lost 74 cents, or 1 percent, to close at $71.28 yesterday in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.
Showing that Monsanto engaged in anti-competitive behavior that harmed residents of their states could enable the attorneys general to demand civil monetary damages in addition to any penalties that the Justice Department may seek, Hovenkamp said.
In one soybean licensing agreement reviewed by Bloomberg, Monsanto offered the licensee financial incentives to favor Roundup Ready seeds and Roundup brand chemicals over those of competitors. The dealer’s agreement with Monsanto is confidential, and he asked that his name not be used.
‘You Had To’
Under the agreement, the licensee would earn a rebate of 7.5 percent of the royalty it pays Monsanto if Roundup Ready accounts for 70 percent of the dealer’s annual herbicide- resistant seed sales. The rebate is halved if the Roundup Ready share is between 50 percent and 75 percent, and isn’t paid at all below 50 percent.
Similar terms were in Monsanto’s licensing agreements with Stine Seed Co. until Monsanto phased them out in recent years, according to Harry Stine, president and founder of the largest closely held seed company in the U.S., based in Adel, Iowa.
“In order to get the large rebate they would give you, you had to minimize your sales of other companies’ seeds,” Stine said. “The rebates were so large that for all practical purposes you had to do it.” At one time, the requirement for earning the full rebate was as high as 90 percent, he said. Stine has a collaborative agreement to develop seeds with Monsanto, he said.
Gene Restrictions
The agreement reviewed by Bloomberg prohibited the dealer from combining the Roundup Ready trait with herbicide-tolerant traits that the licensee or other companies developed. It specifically bars the dealer from using any non-Monsanto genetic modification that makes crops tolerant to glyphosate, the herbicide found in Roundup. Such terms could be anti-competitive because Monsanto controls such a large share of the corn and soybean markets with its Roundup Ready gene, Hovenkamp said.
Monsanto’s Partridge said the company routinely negotiates agreements that allow seed companies to combine Roundup Ready with genetic modifications of its competitors.
“Monsanto has a demonstrated track record of both in- licensing and out-licensing trait technologies to support the development of stacked products,” he said in an interview. “We’ve done this more than any other company in this industry.”
Monsanto is also under scrutiny because the rising price of its seeds has been a sore point for farmers, said Peter Carstensen, a antitrust professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School in Madison.
Farmers’ Costs Rise
“Buying seed used to be not terribly costly,” said Charles Benbrook, chief scientist at the Organic Center in Boulder, Colorado, who in December completed a study of 35 years of seed pricing. “Now farmers are locked into these high seed costs on an annual basis.”
The study showed that soybean farmers spent between 4 percent and 8 percent of their farm income on seeds from 1975 through 1997. Last year, farmers who planted genetically modified soybeans spent 16.4 percent of their income on seeds, it found.
Monsanto’s licensing royalty on soybean seeds with the Roundup Ready trait climbed to $15.65 for each 140,000-seed bag last year from about $6.50 a decade ago, according to the owner of one seed company. A bag of Roundup Ready seed sells for about $35 and can plant three-quarters of an acre (0.3 hectare). He asked not to be named because the terms are confidential under his licensing agreement. Monsanto sells him seeds including the genetic trait, which he then reproduces and sells under his own brand, the person said.
‘Triple Stack’ Corn
Farmers who adopt Monsanto’s Roundup Ready 2 Yield technology, being introduced this year as a replacement for Roundup Ready, will have to pay a royalty of as much as $39.75 a bag, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg.
Cal Dalton, a farmer in Pardeeville, Wisconsin, said he switched to a competitor last year when Monsanto sought a $30 price increase, to $210 a bag, for its “triple stack” corn seed, a line that resists glyphosate, rootworm, and corn borers. Monsanto still earned a royalty on the purchase because the seeds he bought carried the Roundup Ready trait, he said.
The list price for Monsanto’s “Yieldgard VT Triple” brand of triple-stack corn seed rose to about $277.50 a bag this year from $201.83 in 2008, based on seed prices per acre provided by Powers, the spokeswoman. She declined to discuss prices or royalties individual customers pay.
Roundup Ready 2
In the licensing agreement reviewed by Bloomberg, Monsanto agreed to rebate to the dealer as much as 4% of the dealer’s royalty if he developed a plan to move his customers from Roundup Ready to Roundup Ready 2. Monsanto says Roundup Ready 2 soybean seeds boost crop yields by 4.7 bushels an acre compared with traditional Roundup Ready. Soybeans yielded on average 44 bushels an acre last year, according to the USDA.
Stine, who said he’s been on conference calls with the state attorneys general group to discuss the Monsanto investigation, hasn’t made up his mind whether Monsanto’s dealings are anticompetitive.
“On the one hand,” Monsanto is “hard to get along with and very restrictive,” Stine said. “However, in general, their traits and products have been superior to other companies’.”
--With assistance from Lorraine Woellert in Washington and Jack Kaskey in New York. Editors: Gary Putka, Robert L. Simison
To contact the reporter on this story: Alison Fitzgerald in Washington at Afitzgerald2@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Robert Blau in Washington at rblau1@bloomberg.net.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Everything you HAVE TO KNOW about Dangerous Genetically Modified Foods

Everything You HAVE TO KNOW about Dangerous Genetically Modified Foods from Jeffrey Smith on Vimeo.



Expert Jeffrey M. Smith, author of the #1 GMO bestseller Seeds of Deception, and Genetic Roulette, entertains a wildly appreciative audience with shocking facts about how genetically modified organisms (GMOs) entered our lives. Smith links GMO to toxins, allergies, infertility, infant mortality, immune dysfunction, stunted growth, and death. Whistleblowers were fired, threatened, and gagged, and warnings by FDA scientists were ignored. Start today to protect yourself by joining the Campaign for Healthier Eating in America— a plan that gives the consumer the power to end the genetic engineering of our food supply.

written by Roger from One Radio Network:
International bestselling author and independent filmmaker Jeffrey M. Smith is the leading spokesperson on the health dangers of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). His meticulously researched books and films document how the world's most powerful Ag biotech companies bluff and mislead safety officials and critics to put the health of society at risk.

Former US National Institutes of Health scientist Candace Pert describes Jeffrey as "the leading world expert in the understanding and communication of the health issues surrounding genetically modified foods."