{"id":66455,"date":"2015-11-16T12:00:16","date_gmt":"2015-11-16T12:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=66455"},"modified":"2015-11-16T05:09:07","modified_gmt":"2015-11-16T05:09:07","slug":"monsanto-handed-double-whammy-by-mexican-courts-over-planting-gmos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2015\/11\/monsanto-handed-double-whammy-by-mexican-courts-over-planting-gmos\/","title":{"rendered":"Monsanto Handed \u2018Double Whammy\u2019 by Mexican Courts over Planting GMOs"},"content":{"rendered":"

9 Nov 2015 – <\/em>Opponents of genetically modified organisms<\/a> (GMOs) have claimed victory after Mexico\u2019s Supreme Court blocked last week a move that would allow the cultivation of GMO soy in the Mexican states of Campeche and Yucatan. In a separate appeals court decision, a federal judge upheld a\u00a02013 ruling<\/a>\u00a0that barred companies such as\u00a0Monsanto<\/a> and DuPont\/Pioneer from planting or selling their GMO corn within the country\u2019s borders.<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/a>

Two separate court decisions in Mexico have blocked cultivation of Monsanto\u2019s genetically modified corn in the country and soy in two states. Photo credit: GMO Free USA<\/p><\/div>\n

The court decisions were heralded as a\u00a0\u201cdouble whammy\u201d against agribusiness giant\u00a0Monsanto, according to a celebratory\u00a0Facebook post<\/a> from sustainable food advocacy organization GMO Free USA.<\/p>\n

According to a report from\u00a0Mexico News Daily<\/a>, the ruling on Wednesday [4 Nov] favored an injunction filed by Maya beekeepers on the Yucat\u00e1n peninsula, where honey production and collection is its main industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe decision suspends a permit granted to the agrichemical firm Monsanto to farm genetically modified soybeans on over 250,000 hectares in the region and instructs a federal agency it must first consult with indigenous communities before granting any future permits for transgenic soy farming,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n

Environmental organizations such as Greenpeace, Indignaci\u00f3n and Litiga OLE reportedly said that farming GMO soybeans in the region would\u00a0put honey<\/a> production and approximately 15,000 Maya farm families at risk due to the use of the herbicide glyphosate<\/a> (which has been linked to cancer<\/a>). It was also claimed that soy production would lead to deforestation in Campeche.<\/p>\n

Monsanto has since given a response to the decision, denying that its GMO soy has impacted bees<\/a>, causes deforestation or damages the honey industry in the two states, Reuters<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe do not accept accusations that put us as responsible for deforestation and illegal logging in the municipality of Hopelch\u00e9n, Campeche, or any place of the Republic, because our work is rigidly attached to the guidelines provided by law,\u201d the company said in a statement.<\/p>\n

As for GMO corn, Sustainable Pulse<\/a> reported that federal judge Benjamin Soto S\u00e1nchez, head of the second Unitarian Court in Civil and Administrative Matters of the First Circuit, \u201cupheld a provisional suspension prohibiting pertinent federal agencies from processing and granting the privilege of sowing or releasing into the environment of transgenic maize in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

This decision came\u00a0despite 100 challenges by transnational agribusiness interests and the federal government, according to Sustainable Pulse.<\/p>\n

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BREAKING NEWS: Mexico Gives Monsanto a Double Whammy. Monsanto and the GMO\/agrichemical industry didn't have a… https:\/\/t.co\/C1nFagO6yw<\/a><\/p>\n

— GMO Free USA (@GMOFreeUSA) November 9, 2015<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n