Print This PageCorporate Responsibility
Protecting Innovation
Innovation remains the very core of Monsanto's success. It sparks the creation of new products and delivers substantial value to producers and consumers. Over the last decade,Monsanto's innovative products have increased crop yield as well as reduced the use of pesticides. The result is a better quality of life for farmers through higher incomes and less time spent working the land.
As a creative technology company, Monsanto relies on strong intellectual property protection. In the United States and Canada, long-standing national government policies that recognize and enforce intellectual property (IP) rights have allowed farmers to reap the benefits of biotech crops for more than a decade.
Important developing nations such as Argentina, China, and India continue the process of building quality IP systems. Other nations, like Brazil and Paraguay, have comprehensive IP systems and are making concerted efforts to improve enforcement of intellectual property rights.
In nations where enforcement of IP rights is strong, farmers are recognizing the value they receive in Monsanto's high-tech seeds and are more willing to pay for it. Similarly, biosafety regulations are now in place in many nations and new products are being approved in a timely fashion.
In countries where IP systems do not exist, are weak, or are not enforced, innovative companies are not investing their resources, the work of creative citizens is unprotected, and counterfeiting and piracy are common. When a company's intellectual property is stolen, standards of quality and stewardship are also compromised. Ultimately, customers suffer from sub-standard, potentially dangerous counterfeit products and economies suffer the loss of business investment in new technologies that could contribute to the nation's competitiveness in the global marketplace.
Global Cost of Counterfeiting and Piracy
Perhaps the most pressing intellectual property challenge today is the increasing problem of counterfeiting and piracy. Perceived to be problems primarily for the entertainment and information technology industries, counterfeiting and piracy are also threats to innovative science businesses like ours. To address these threats, Monsanto provides support to numerous anticounterfeiting programs, such as the International Chamber of Commerce, Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy; the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Coalition Against Counterfeiting and Piracy; and the U.S. Commerce Department, Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy. We also enforce our patents in countries that provide intellectual property protections in order to achieve a level playing field for the majority of customers who abide by the law and pay for the products they use. Similarly, Monsanto works with governments and international organizations to help develop and enforce counterfeiting and piracy laws to ensure people who buy brand-name products receive the quality and performance they have come to expect from the label.
Investing in Growers Who Invest in Us
As regulatory and intellectual protection (IP) enforcement systems develop around
the world, more farmers will be able to take advantage of agricultural biotech traits.
Farmers in the U.S. and Canada were the first to legally buy and use Monsanto's
traits more than 10 years ago and their acreage — and support — have grown ever
since. As a show of appreciation for their loyalty, Monsanto is offering North American
growers three premium products and services.
MARKET DEVELOPMENT: North American growers will receive exclusive access to products from the Vistive heart-healthy soybean portfolio as long as they can meet food company demand in a costcompetitive way. Vistive low-linolenic soybean oil does not require partial hydrogenation and so is lower in trans fats. This year, nearly 500,000 acres were planted in expanded geographies throughout the U.S. Midwest. Processors are currently paying farmers a premium of $0.25 to $0.45 a bushel for Vistive low-linolenic soybeans. In the future, U.S. farmers will also be given preferred access to several additional soybean products including soy crops that will produce vegetable oils enriched with omega-3 fatty acids which have many heart-healthy qualities.
RISK MANAGEMENT: Growers in three U.S. states, Arkansas, Missouri and North Carolina, who double crop Roundup Ready Soybeans, will be eligible for a 2006 pilot Double Crop Risk Protection program. Double cropping is the practice of planting a second crop on a given acreage soon after harvesting the first crop. If any of these growers have complete soybean crop failure, they would be eligible to receive a refund payment from Monsanto. "Many farmers who double crop soybeans plant their second crop later in the season, and so incur greater risk due to moisture variability, early freeze and other climate factors. We've long recognized farmers' risk and are evaluating this tool to address the unique issues faced by our double crop Roundup Ready soybean customers," said Carl Casale, Monsanto executive vice president, North America Commercial.
STRATEGIC PLANNING: Monsanto will support and provide resources for a comprehensive study looking at what the future holds for the soybean industry in the year 2020. Soy 2020, coordinated by the United Soybean Board, will examine current trends and identify economic, political, and competitive factors that will shape the next 15 years of soy production, including market segments such as animal agriculture, biodiesel, and food manufacturing. "As a technology provider, a study such as this can help guide our research to better match up with the industry's goals," said Casale.
As other global economies develop and more growers can invest in our technology, we will see how these pilot programs or other programs developed for different needs, can bring even more value to customers around the world.
