Seed choice is a big dilemma
Seed choice is a big dilemma
TO buy GM seed or non-GM? That is the question North American farmers are wrestling with this winter.
Early sales suggest GM seed is losing out as uncertainty surrounds export and domestic markets alike, reports North American freelance journalist Stephen Leahy.
GM seed costs up to 25% more than conventional seed and some non-GM maize and soya netted premiums this autumn of up to £3.60/t and £22.93/t, respectively. Some seed dealers are speculating that sales of GM varieties will drop 20% or more.
Concern over GM foods is rising within North America and a proposal to require labelling has gone before the American Congress.
The American Corn Growers Association estimates there will be 20-25% less GM crop planted next spring than last season. Although not anti-GM, the 24-state producer group has recommended farmers grow non-GM varieties until the controversy is resolved.
Meanwhile, GM seed companies Monsanto, Novartis and Pioneer Hi Bred are working hard to prevent a wholesale shift to non-GM seeds, producing copious promotional material and talking to growers direct.
Robert Wichmann of Pioneer Hi-Bred, the USAs biggest seed company, was recently quoted in the Wall St Journal as predicting some slippage in GM seed sales.
Rather than holding to traditional practice of annual price rises, seed companies are freezing prices on GM varieties. Novartis Canada recently went further, announcing price discounts on its GM soya and maize seeds. *