Monsanto, the infamous multinational biochemical company, is investing in research .
But not just any old one:the one about bees.
This new strategy does not fail to worry American beekeepers.
Until then Monsanto had been content to focus its development on genetically modified (GMO) seeds...
...and the production of phytosanitary products (pesticides).
But the biochemical firm's appetite is growing!
Monsanto is now investing in "bio-control", especially that of bees. Explanations:
We know that these little insects are essential for our ecosystem to survive.
Indeed, 1/3 of our food depends on bees!
And their weight in the economy is just as important. According to INRA, they represent no less than 153 billion euros per year.
Not bad for a little beast like that!
Unfortunately, bees aren't in great shape these days...
For 15 years, the mortality rate of bee colonies has reached record highs!
It is now more than 30% , while a rate considered normal is around 10%.
Human factors explain this excessive mortality.
Bees are primarily selected for their productivity rather than their ability to adapt to their environment.
Intensive agriculture tends to impoverish biodiversity and deprives bees of food sources.
Hives are also too frequently moved to pollinate crops, especially in the United States.
And of course there are the pesticides...
Faced with this observation, Monsanto paradoxically poses as the defender of bees.
And his weapon is genetic research. In 2011, Monsanto acquired Beeologic, a company whose core business is bee health.
Monsanto justifies its approach with a commitment to sustainable development.
"Monsanto knows that bees are a key component of sustainable agriculture around the world," says the biochemical giant in this press release.
To counter bee colony collapse syndrome, Beeologics is working on ribonucleic acid (RNA) replicas.
This work would allow bees to synthesize proteins to fight against certain viruses. The company considers it a success.
But this approach is not unanimous among scientists. For some, hindsight is not enough to know all the real effects.
Thus Christoph Then, veterinarian specializing in biotechnology and former expert for Greenpeace, believes in the magazine Reporterre that “the RNA used is not stable and can pass from one organism to another. So at this point, this technology is not safe enough to be used in the environment. »
In any case, Monsanto takes care of its communication! True, these technologies that are expected to develop in the coming years will certainly not bring in a lot of money.
But they have the merit of hiding a truth:pesticides are one of the major factors in the disappearance of bees.
This sudden interest of Monsanto in the health of bees challenges beekeepers...
On the occasion of the World Congress of Beekeepers, Gilles Ratia, President of the International Federation of Beekeepers Apimundia, did not fail to recall Monsanto's historical activity in pesticides and the genetic modification of living things:plants, seeds... .
A logical question follows:
What if Monsanto was interested in bees to make them resistant to the pesticides it produces, responsible for their disappearance?
The circle would be closed...
You don't know the multinational Monsanto yet?
Then we recommend this DVD entitled "The world according to Monsanto":
