A qui profitent les plantes GM?

The document contends that GM crops are not a solution to global hunger, as hunger is caused by poverty and lack of resource access rather than production deficits. It asserts that GM crops do not increase yields—and in some cases decrease them—while increasing pesticide use and costs for farmers. The text highlights that the primary beneficiaries are biotech giants like Monsanto, which maximize profits through 'trait penetration' and rising seed and herbicide prices, while the model favors large-scale export agriculture over small-scale farmers.

• Global hunger is driven by poverty and systemic lack of access to resources rather than a shortage of food production. Key drivers for small farmers include lack of credit, land access, inputs, and technical support, while urban hunger is caused by the inability to afford increasingly expensive food.
• GM crops are not designed for the poor and are primarily used for animal feed, biofuels, or processed products in wealthy nations. Production is concentrated in a few export-oriented countries, with the US, Brazil, and Argentina accounting for 80% of GM acreage in 2007, and the US alone growing over 50% of the world's GM crops.
• There is no evidence that commercial GM plants increase yields; in some instances, they decrease them. For example, RoundUp Ready soybeans have shown yield losses of 5% to 10% compared to conventional varieties, and US cotton yields stagnated during the adoption of GM varieties.
• The use of pesticides is increasing with GM crops, including chemicals banned in some European countries. This leads to higher costs for farmers and creates environmental and health problems, particularly for poor communities near intensive farms.
• Biotechnology companies, specifically Monsanto, maximize profits through a strategy of 'trait penetration,' where they introduce seeds with more genetic traits to justify higher prices and phase out cheaper varieties. Monsanto's retail price for RoundUp herbicide increased by 130% in less than two years between December 2006 and June 2008.
• The GM agricultural model favors large-scale industrial farming and export markets, which facilitates land concentration and marginalizes small farmers. In Argentina, converting land to GM soy creates only 2 jobs per hectare, compared to 9 to 10 families supported by conventional food crops on modest family farms.
• The International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) concluded that the most effective way to fight hunger is through ecologically sound, low-input agricultural methods like agro-ecology, rather than GM plants, which have a very low capacity to alleviate poverty.

APA

Villar, J. L., Freese, B., Holder, H., Chandrasekaran, K., & Rodriguez, L. (2009). A qui profitent les plantes GM? Friends of the Earth International. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2009-francia_-foei-gmo_082009-1.pdf

Chicago

Villar, Juan Lopez, Bill Freese, Helen Holder, Kirtana Chandrasekaran, and Lorena Rodriguez. A qui profitent les plantes GM? Friends of the Earth International, 2009. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2009-francia_-foei-gmo_082009-1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Villar |first1=Juan Lopez |last2=Freese |first2=Bill |last3=Holder |first3=Helen |last4=Chandrasekaran |first4=Kirtana |last5=Rodriguez |first5=Lorena |title=A qui profitent les plantes GM? |publisher=Friends of the Earth International |date=May 2009 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2009-francia_-foei-gmo_082009-1.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{villar2009qui, author = {Villar, Juan Lopez and Freese, Bill and Holder, Helen and Chandrasekaran, Kirtana and Rodriguez, Lorena}, title = {{A qui profitent les plantes GM?}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2009}, month = may, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2009-francia_-foei-gmo_082009-1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }