HR 933 along with section 735 was passed by congress Tuesday. Section 735 of the bill also known as the “Monsanto protection act” was added into the Agricultural Appropriations Bill, which passed through Congress last week. Apparently many members of Congress did not even know it was included in HR933.The provision was passed without appropriate review by the Agricultural or Judiciary Committees and that is a big win for Monsanto. Section 735 protects genetically modified seeds from court action in the face of health risks. President Barack Obama signed the spending bill, including the provision, into law on Tuesday as well. Even though over a quarter of a million farmers and organic gardening advocates had signed a petition opposing the law and even protested at the White-house. Here is what the provision does. It basically bars federal courts from being able to halt the sale or planting of controversial genetically modified organisms (aka GMO) or genetically engineered (aka GE) seeds, no matter what health issues may arise concerning genetically modified organisms in the future. Even though this bill will only remain in effect for the next six months it sets the precedent that big business can ignore consumer safety if they can get the law makers on their side. Monsanto and the other companies that make GMOs now have free reign to use all of us as guinea pigs in their genetic engineering experiments with no fear of government interference. If you are interested in learning more about HR 933 you can view the full bill here.
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