The biotech giant Monsanto, which is responsible for genetically modifying much of the nation’s and world’s crops, announced that its earnings fell 34% in its first fiscal quarter as South American farmers reject GMO crops.
This is even more evidence that the number of individuals and farmers who realize the potential dangers of GMOs is growing.
Monsanto’s decline in earnings is also the result of farmers using less acreage for planting corn, reducing demand for the company’s manufactured seeds.
What’s more, Monsanto’s revenue fell more than 8% to $2.87bn in the period due to a lower sales of corn seeds and herbicide. It was reported that analysts expected $2.96bn, according to Zacks.
Monsanto shares have decreased nearly 3% since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index has climbed slightly more than 8%. Stock, though, has increased slightly in the last 12 months.
If you’re invested in Monsanto stock like Bill Gates, who owns hundreds of thousand of Monsanto shares worth about $23 million, it might be time to pull out. The biotech giant also reported over $156 million in losses for the fourth quarter of 2014.
“For the quarter ended Aug. 31, Monsanto reported a loss of $156 million, or 31 cents per share, compared with a loss of $249 million, or 47 cents per share, in the same period last year.”
It’s a tough time for biotech. Monsanto’s losses were attributed to farmers in major agricultural zones favoring soy over GMO corn because of falling crop prices – largely caused by Syngenta’s release of MIR162 corn, which has been completely refused by Chinese officials repeatedly – which have depressed both local and foreign corn bushel prices.
It is no secret that Monsanto has been at the center of controversy over its genetically-modified seeds for some time.
After all, where do you think all the March Against Monsanto events have stemmed from? You guessed it – from a widespread resistance against Monsanto’s chemical and genetically modified creations.
With Monsanto filing 145 lawsuits over the last 16 years against farmers who have “improperly reused their patented seeds,” and with Monsanto pouring millions into fighting GMO labeling measures across the country, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Monsanto come to a sudden halt in the not so distant future.
By Mike Barrett, Natural Society;
