I knew almost nothing about genetically modified seeds, let alone F1 seeds, until I grew my own cotton, even though I had produced news programs for NHK and TV Asahi. if I bought F1 cotton seeds, planted them, and then planted subsequent seeds the following year, they did not germinate, had extremely I found that the yield was lower, the fiber length was shorter, and there were other significant differences between the first generation cotton balls and the second generation cotton balls when I observed them closely. That is when I first learned of the existence of F1 species, to my shame.

I had only thought about GMOs to the extent of, "Is it safe to eat?" When I looked into it carefully, I found that I had already eaten a lot of it. Not because I was on a business trip to the U.S., but because there are many processed products imported to Japan as well. I wanted to know what kind of notation was used, so for a while I read every single website of retailers, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, and food companies.

There are no large-scale epidemiological studies on genetically modified foods. What about over the long term?　What about when you have children? There are some questions, but these questions seem to be under dispute. Apart from these health issues, a puzzling project is underway by Monsanto.

One such project is called "Noah's Ark," which is being promoted by Monsanto and a huge American foundation. Every year, native species (fixed and original species) are rapidly disappearing. The project's objective is: "We are losing crop biodiversity every day, so we need to save seeds that apply to all environments for the future of agriculture and to protect humanity from crises such as climate change and epidemics. We need a safe vault of seeds that will survive all crises". It is built under the glaciers of the Arctic Circle. If we store them at 18 or 20 degrees below zero, theoretically, they could be stored for 1,000 years. They say that the seeds can be preserved for as long as 2,000 years, and if the temperature is gradually increased and the seeds are taken out of storage, they will germinate.

Why are they promoting a business model that would eradicate native species all over the world, while at the same time investing large amounts of money in projects to store large numbers of native species...?

Monsanto continues to increase its world-leading market share in selling the more important seeds in agriculture. The F1 seeds that Monsanto sells have excellent productivity. Again, these F1 seeds only grow for one generation. This means that you will have to keep buying seed forever. I believe that profit can be expressed in one word: "Unit price x Quantity x Repeaters. Monsanto's seeds are expensive because they use advanced biotechnological technology. They have the ability to sell them all over the world. And you have to keep buying their seeds all the time. To make a profit, Monsanto's methods meet all the requirements.

Monsanto, which has expanded into India, Brazil, Mexico, and other countries, claims that Monsanto's intellectual property rights extend to varieties crossbred with these F1 seeds. By that logic, they have filed costly lawsuits against small farmers. Farmers have no choice but to cry themselves to sleep. This is also a major reason for the mass suicides of Indian cotton farmers.

In Japan, the company selling the seeds also involves Monsanto and related major U.S. grain trading companies.

When a company such as Monsanto becomes this large, it naturally has an impact on politics.

Biotech companies such as Monsanto have long been major donors to the U.S. Congress, and last March the so-called "Monsanto Protection Act" was passed.
The Monsanto Protection Act simply states, "If a consumer complains of poor health due to seeds sold by Monsanto, the government cannot order the company, including Monsanto, to stop sales unless there is 100% positive proof.

Long-term epidemiological studies and scientific substantiation are practically impossible. For this reason, the bill subsequently received more than 250,000 signatures demanding its withdrawal. Even after its passage, protests took place around the world, and the American public was so outraged that it was withdrawn within six months.

Russia is considering a total ban on genetically modified foods; similar moves are underway in the EU, Latin America, and elsewhere. The backlash against genetically modified seeds, which are the life produced, is growing on a global scale.

Import approvals for GMOs are increasing in Japan. The following crops are currently approved in Japan.

Potatoes, soybeans, sugar beets, corn, rape, cotton, alfalfa, papaya

Other The following additives derived from GMOs have been approved.
α-amylase, chymosin, pullulanase, lipase, riboflavin, glucoamylase α-glucosyltransferase

( to be continued )