Weed-killer prompts angry divide among US farmers

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Little Rock (United States) (AFP) - When it comes to the herbicide dicamba, farmers in the southern state of Arkansas are not lacking for strong opinions.

"Farmers need it desperately," said Perry Galloway.

"If I get dicamba on (my products), I can't sell anything," responded Shawn Peebles.

The two men know each other well, living just miles apart in the towns of Gregory and Augusta, in a corner of the state where cotton and soybean fields reach to the horizon and homes are often miles from the nearest neighbor.

But they disagree profoundly on the use of dicamba.

Last year the agro-chemical giant Monsanto began selling soy and cotton seeds genetically modified to tolerate the herbicide.

The chemical product has been used to great effect against a weed that plagues the region, Palmer amaranth, or pigweed -- especially since it became resistant to another herbicide, glyphosate, which has become highly controversial in Europe over its effects on human health.

The problem with dicamba is that it vaporizes easily and is carried by the wind, often spreading to nearby farm fields -- with varying effects.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/weed-killer-prompts-angry-divide-among-us-farmers/ar-BBET8RH?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=edgsp

[Scoopster]

1. NPR had a story about this a few weeks back.

They've gone from suing people because their frankenseeds cross-pollinated another field with normal seeds, to now committing floral genocide by pushing a chemical known to destroy crops back into the market & letting it contaminate other fields that don't use their frankenseeds.

[Progressive dog]

3. That is not true.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/10/18/163034053/top-five-myths-of-genetically-modified-seeds-busted

Myth 2: Monsanto will sue you for growing their patented GMOs if traces of those GMOs entered your fields through wind-blown pollen.

This is the idea that I see most often. A group of organic farmers, in fact, recently sued Monsanto, asserting that GMOs might contaminate their crops and then Monsanto might accuse them of patent infringement. The farmers couldn't cite a single instance in which this had happened, though, and the judge dismissed the case.

[Phoenix61]

2. I don't believe in Satan

but if I did, he'd be running Monsanto.