Court Decision Keeps Genetically Engineered Alfalfa Off the Fields

By Christine White

A recent appeals court ruling upholds a nationwide ban on GE alfalfa, claiming it can cause permanent damage to crops, the environment, and the livelihood of farmers.

In the 1990’s, Monsanto began developing a variety of genetically modified alfalfa that would be resistant to one of the company’s major herbicides. This Monsanto alfalfa, called Roundup Ready alfalfa, was approved by the USDA in 2005—but not without a significant political backlash.

USDA’s approval was given without a full Environmental Impact Statement in violation of national environmental laws. In addition, many farmers feared cross-pollination of Roundup Ready with other alfalfa varieties, threatening the livelihood of conventional alfalfa farmers. In May 2007, a ruling by District Court Judge Charles Breyer established a nationwide ban on the planting of Monsanto’s alfalfa. The ruling claimed that the USDA failed to address concerns that Roundup Ready will cause harm to conventional and organic alfalfa.

This past week, the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reaffirmed that May 2007 ruling and upheld the nationwide ban of Round Up Ready Alfalfa. The court ruled that the planting of GE alfalfa poses potentially irreversible damage to varieties of crops, the environment, and the economy of farmers. The ruling also denied a court appeals request by Monsanto and Forage Genetics.

Andrew Kimbrell, executive director of The Center for Food Safety, recognizing the importance of this ruling both for the environment and the rights of farmers and consumers alike, said:

“This ruling affirms a major victory for consumers, ranchers, organic farmers, and most conventional farmers across the country. Roundup Ready Alfalfa represents a very real threat to farmers’ livelihoods and the environment; the court rightly dismissed Monsanto’s claims that their bottom line should come before the rights of the public and America’s farmers. This ruling is a turning point in the regulation of biotech crops in this country.”