Achievements
in Plant
Biotechnology
1999

Questions & Answers

A: Yes, it is possible to detect whether the products of genetically modified crops, such as soybeans, corn, cotton, potatoes, etc., are present in a grain or food sample. Currently, there are two criteria used for detection. One involves the detection of specific proteins produced in the crop that are present as a result of genetic modification. The other detects the actual DNA sequences that have been inserted into the plants.

A laboratory test called ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbant Assay) can be used to determine whether specific biotech proteins are present in a sample, and other tests, called PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) and Southern Blot Analysis, are used to detect the presence of specific DNA sequences. Though all these methods provide reliable data concerning the presence of particular proteins or DNA sequences, only the ELISA analysis can indicate a percentage of a particular protein present in the sample.

Q: Is it possible for grain elevator operators to determine whether a particular load of grain was produced by biotechnology crops?

A: A number of companies have developed and now are selling kits for elevator operators and others to use to help identify the presence of some genetically enhanced corn and soybeans in the grain loads elevators receive. The kits can detect the presence of specific proteins or specific DNA sequences in certain crops varieties. In 1999, kits were available only for the commercial testing of Roundup Ready soybeans.

Q: Are there mechanisms in place that enable U.S. farmers to grow genetically enhanced crops that are not approved for export to certain key markets?

A: First, it is important to note that all of Monsanto's Biotech crops, except Round Ready corn, are fully approved in key import markets worldwide and can be marketed as commodity grain. Roundup Ready corn is commercially approved for sale in the United States and Japan, with approval pending in the European Union. As a result, U.S.-grown Roundup Ready corn was channeled only into domestic markets in 1999. Channeling will continue until full export approval is received.

To assist American Farmers in selling their 1999 Roundup Ready corn harvest, the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA), Monsanto, and others established a channeling program to help farmers sell their Roundup Ready corn (and other corn hybrids not approved for import into key markets) into United States domestic markets. Roundup Ready corn, however, represented only 5 percent of all the corn grown in the United States. All U.S. farmers who grew it were able to sell their harvest for domestic consumption.

Q: How do you know the products of biotech crops are safe for animals to eat?

A: The safety of biotech products for consumption by animals is established through comprehensive studies, which are reviewed by national and international regulatory authorities. These studies demonstrate that the newly introduced proteins that confer tolerance to Roundup herbicide or protection against specific insect pests are safe, and that the genetic modification of the plant has not changed the food, feed, or environmental safety of the grain.

Further, these enhanced crops have cleared reviews for feed safety by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which reviews products intended for human or animal consumption. The FDA found them to be substantially equivalent to conventional grains in their nutritional composition.

"...genetic engineering does not seem very different from other forms of scientific advance." General Synod Board for Social Responsibility, Church of England, 1999

A: The biotech proteins found in grain from genetically enhanced crops are not passed along by animals in the food products they produce. As with any other protein, these biotech proteins are completely broken down in the animal's digestive system.

Q: How do you know there won't be any long-term consequences to humans or animals from the consumption of food or feed that contains the products of biotech plants?

A: While no one can prove a negative outcome, we are making sure the risk is as close to zero as possible by asking the right questions up front and completing the right tests to determine the safety of these crops. We conduct a vast array of analytical tests over a period of years, and the results of those tests are closely analyzed by U.S. and international regulatory officials before we receive commercialization approval. Through these tests we have determined that the new proteins in biotech grains show no similarity to known toxins or allergens; they are present in very low levels; they are digested by humans and animals in a matter of seconds; and they have shown no harmful effects to animals when fed at very high levels.

Q: Should biotechnology crops be labeled?

A: Monsanto supports food labeling programs which provide important safety or nutritional information to consumers. Label information should be truthful, it should be based on sound science, and it should not be misleading. However, when food products from biotech crops are substantially equivalent to foods from conventional crops - with no safety, nutritional, or health differences - we agree with the FDA that there is no reason to label the process.

The European Union has chosen to require labeling of any food products in which more than 1 percent of any ingredient is derived from biotech crops. Monsanto will be responsive to this European requirement.

Q: Will insect-protected crops promote the development of insect resistance?

A: Monsanto has worked with industry groups, academic institutions, and the U.S. government to develop proactive insect resistance management programs for our crops. These programs call for growers to plant refuge areas of non-Bt crops adjacent to Bt-protected crops in a certain proportion. Insect refuges provide an environment in which non-resistant insects can grow and multiply. We're also working on second generation crops with two different Bt genes, which will further reduce the risk of resistance. We're continuing to work with growers and scientists in stewarding this technology to ensure the long-term effectiveness of Bt. To date, insect resistance to our Bt protected crops has not been demonstrated to occur in the field, though some laboratory studies suggest that it is a possibility.

"American farmers...and farmers around the world like the idea of genetic enhancement." Dean Kleckner, Grower, Iowa

Q: Is the pollen from YieldGard insect-protected corn safe for monarch butterfly larvae?

A: Research and experience to date indicate Bt corn does not pose danger for monarch larvae and other beneficial insects. In fact, Bt (the protein from a common soil bacterium that is incorporated into crop plants like YieldGard corn) has been used as a foliar insecticidal spray by organic farmers for more than 30 years with no known adverse effect. Confidence in the lack of danger of these crops for monarchs also is based on thousands of tests conducted by corporate and university scientists over many years.

However, the result of one experiment - carried out in a Cornell University laboratory last year - suggested Bt may be harmful to the monarch's larvae. Even the scientist who conducted the experiment said his study might not accurately represent what happens in nature. As a result, a number of scientists, primarily from American and Canadian universities, conducted their own independent field research projects last summer. Preliminary results were announced in November, at which time all the university scientists concluded Bt was extremely unlikely to harm monarchs or any other beneficials. As the scientists continued to evaluate the data they had gathered, their conclusions concerning monarch safety remained the same. Many of these scientists plan to continue their research during the summer of 2000. In fact, the North American Butterfly Association reported that 1999 was a good year for the monarch populations.

Q: Are growers readily adopting crops improved through biotechnology?

A: More than 99 million acres of modified crops were grown worldwide in 1999 - a 44 percent increase over the acreage planted in 1998. This is a testament to grower adoption of this new technology, which, according to ISAAA (the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications), is the quickest adoption of a new agricultural technology ever recorded. In recent opinion surveys, US farmers indicated these crops save them significant time and money over conventional hybrids and varieties while they increase grower income. Surveys of farmers in other countries, including Canada, Argentina, China, and South Africa, indicate similar economic advantages from growing biotech crops. Monsanto is gratified that farmers recognize the value of these crops to their ability to compete in the global marketplace.

Q: Will Roundup Ready crops promote the development of herbicide-resistant weeds?

A: Weeds are less likely to develop resistance to Roundup herbicide than other herbicides because Roundup possesses several unique traits: No other family of herbicides has a mode of action that inhibits the plant's ability to produce a certain enzyme (EPSP synthase) the plant needs to survive, and, as a post-emergent herbicide, Roundup has no residual soil activity - a trait that greatly limits the chance that resistant weeds could appear in a weed population over time. Roundup continues to be the cornerstone of weed management programs throughout the world.

Italics throughout this publication indicate trademarks and service marks of Monsanto Company.

Forward Looking information

Certain statements made in this document, including those relating to the company's future products and anticipated sales results, are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations, available information, and assumptions that the company believes to be reasonable. However, these statements necessarily involve risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ materially from those suggested. Factors that could cause actual results to differ from those anticipated include but are not limited to the economic, competitive, governmental, technological, business and financial factors identified in Monsanto Form 10-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Regulatory approvals of grain/commodities harvested from Roundup Ready corn and Roundup Ready & YieldGard corn stacked are pending in certain export markets, and may not be received before the end of 2000. As a result, the Grower is restricted from introducing such grain/commodities into channels of trade where the potential of export to such markets exists.

The Grower must channel such grain/commodities for feeding on farm, use in domestic feedlots or other uses in domestic markets only. Growers should refer to the Monsanto Technology Use Guide for information on crop stewardship to avoid the potential movement of pollen to neighboring crops.

For assistance in locating domestic grain outlets for corn grain/commodities, view the ASTA web site at www.amseed.org or contact Monsanto at 1-800-768-6387.

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