Seeds of Doubt Apr 15, 2004 - Richvale, IL, USA - Bryce Lundberg and his dog Chief get pelted with rice and barley during the planting season on his organic rice farm in Richvale on Thursday April 15, 2004. Recenty a promising new report about genetically modified corn flickered across a Web site sponsored by the corn's corporate creator, the biotechnology giant Monsanto Co. Citing new research by the University of California, Davis, the report said corn altered to produce its own pesticide could make farmers across the country wealthier and reduce the use of toxic insecticides. But there was one fact the 'Biotech Knowledge Center' Web site failed to mention: Monsanto paid for the UC Davis research. Following a pattern set by farm chemical companies in the 1960s, the biotechnology industry is mining public agricultural colleges such as UC Davis for scientific research, confidential business advice and academic support for its technology. At UC Davis biotechnology companies helped pay for laboratory studies, scholarships, post doctoral students' salaries, professors' travel expenses, even the campus utility bill. Some professors earn extra money, up to $2,000 a month, consulting for such companies on the side.
Pictures (c) RENEE C. BYER/Sacramento Bee/ZUMA Press