The producer-leaders of the American Soybean Association (ASA) were not particularly impressed with the news that the government of Brazil will now temporarily allow soybean producers to legally plant Roundup Ready Soybeans® (RRSB). While the Brazilian Government appears to be acknowledging that there has been almost exponential growth in the illegal planting of RRSB over the last six planting seasons and that RRSB will again be planted over an increasing area of Brazil, the government’s measure is only temporary and puts off until next year many decisions.

Speaking on behalf of ASA’s 25,000 members, the group’s President Ron Heck, a producer from Perry, Iowa, said, "At best, this is only a small step in the right direction if it ultimately leads to a long-term strategy for biotechnology and adequate enforcement of Intellectual Property rights for seed technologies in Brazil."

Late Thursday, after three days of confusion and delays, Brazil’s acting President Jose Alencar signed a presidential decree authorizing the planting of genetically modified soybeans in all of Brazil for the 2003-2004 growing season. It is ASA’s understanding that the decree also allows for sales of the crop coming from the biotech-enhanced seeds until December 31, 2004. Farmers planting and commercializing biotech seed between now and December 31, 2004 will have to sign a document pledging to not buy seeds of untraced origin in the future.

"I am very skeptical," Heck said. "Just because it’s a law in Brazil doesn’t mean that there will be any enforcement. Growers have been illegally planting pirated Roundup Ready soybean seed right under the government’s nose for more than six years."

ASA has argued that because Brazilian growers are obtaining their RRSB seed illegally, they are gaining an ill-gotten $9.30 to $15.50 per acre (the cost range is affected by planting rates, row widths and other factors) competitive advantage over U.S. growers just from the failure to pay the royalties for patented seed technology like U.S. growers must.

According to reports, today’s decree does not allow for the sale of new biotech seed, but rather allows farmers to plant the illegal seed they now have on hand, and would allow the Brazilian Agriculture Minister to extend the cutoff date for commercializing biotech seeds in Brazil, under condition that the farmer can demonstrate the origin of those soybeans.

"I’d like to know how the farmers are going to prove the origin of the soybeans when the seed they are planting was obtained illegally," Heck said. "On the other hand, one potentially positive result of this action is that Brazilian farmers and traders will no longer be able to give international customers the illusion that all Brazilian soybeans are ‘non-GMO.’"

ASA will post a translation of the decree on its website www.soygrowers.com as soon as it becomes available.

"ASA strongly supports a farmer’s access to legally obtained biotech-enhanced seedstock," Heck said. "It seems obvious that Brazilian growers appreciate the benefits of biotechnology just like producers in the U.S., as witnessed by the widespread use of the technology in Brazil. The big difference right now is that Brazilian growers aren’t paying for it."

About 80 percent of the soybeans in the United States were grown from biotech-enhanced seed this year. About 99 percent of the soybeans soon to be planted in Argentina, and 70 to 90 percent of the soybeans to be planted in Southern Brazil and 30 to 40 percent nationwide, will be biotech-enhanced varieties. Collectively, these three countries produce more than 90 percent of the world's soybean exports.