These companies are cut from the same mold. For them to merge, if anything, I'd think they'd have to spin-off some of their seed operations, which could be good for us. Home Garden could become independent, though it's hard to say, but what I've always said, one of these days Better Boy and other good tomatoes will be rid of Big Ag and I would like that. It's simply not a good fit. They could stick to their stuff and we could recover some of ours ;-) Maybe we'll eventually be rid of Round-up, too! The Germans probably helped this along when they played Round-Up politics recently in an attempt to give Syngenta (a European Co.), the upper hand. R&D is so expensive and it really helps no one that both maintain huge crews of lawyers to unleash against each other and regulators at a moment's notice. There is a lot of duplication that is unnecessary.

PC

Monsanto as it is "owns" USDA and FDA, it is like putting fox to be in charge of chicken coop.

Related topic: someone told me they've heard even flowers are being made roundup ready now. I have not noticed that myself, but I guess it sorta makes sense - you could roundup your flower beds and kill only the weeds. Does anyone know whether this is true or just some hysterical worry that's being passed around on facebook?

No way ornamentals would pass GMO scrutiny/marketing in my opinion at this point. There are hybrid Sunflower seeds bred to be Clearfield Ready, though, bred from genes found in a "traditional mutant" Sunflower in a soybean field. BASF's Clearfield is an herbicide system similar to Roundup used for some oilseeds including Sunflower. I'd guess the rest is misinformation from the cybervillage ;-)

PC

How doe this affects us, backyard gardeners and shoppers at the grocery stores ? Just wondering !

Sey

You/ and I mean general YOU as human being/ will not die happy from old age. You will die slowly and painfully circulating between nursing home and hospital for most of your retirement.

Adding big corporation to big corporation makes them law unto themselves. Bon appetite!

Time to start looking for homestead.

Couple of seemingly unrelated links

Ticks and agriculture practices

/http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/lawn-chemicals-and-cancer-in-dogs/

and never mind most grain crops being poisoned by Roundup...

Syngenta Reiterates Rejection of Monsanto Takeover Offer

> ZURICH—Syngenta AG on Tuesday again rejected Monsanto Co.’s roughly $45
billion takeover offer, reiterating the Swiss company’s position that
the proposed deal undervalues its business and underestimates the
regulatory challenges of completing the transaction.

Update on my earlier question: I think the person talking about roundup ready flowers had actually heard about Neonicotinoid insecticides. They are routinely applied to big box store plants and also at good nurseries. They are thought to be potentially toxic to humans as well as bees.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/pest-control/neonicotinoid-insecticides-zmgz14fmzsto.aspx