Monsanto Mystery

Monsanto Mystery. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Line On Agriculture.

Questions continue in the wake of the small amount of genetically modified wheat found in that Oregon wheat field. It’s been labeled a CP4 event. Monsanto’s Chief Technology Officer, Rob Fraley.

FRALEY: The CP4 event was not present in the seed varieties the grower planted in 2011. The USDA has also confirmed that the CP4 event was not present in the grain that was harvested from the farmers field in the summer of 2012. And so as you know last spring, the spring of 2013, after farming the same field for nine years without encountering any problems the farmer found a smattering of volunteer wheat plants in the field and in only about 1% of that field.

Fraley uses the word “suspicious” since this wheat was not found in any other fields planted with the same wheat nor was it found in any other farms or fields in the area.

FRALEY: So we reached out to the attorney representing the farmer and he confirmed the appearance of the CP4 event appeared in patches or clumps and appeared here or there in the field. Wheat planting distributes the seed uniformly throughout a field. Secretary Vilsack also noted this particular circumstance is unusual and odd and very rare.

Fraley says it really looks more like someone dispersed the seed by hand and maintains that the farmer is a victim in this situation.

That’s today’s Line On Agriculture. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.