Monsanto 1901-2014 Timeline Of Crime

1901: Monsanto was founded in St. Louis, Missouri by John Francis Queeny, a 30-year veteran of the pharmaceutical
industry. Queeny funded the start-up with capital from Coca-Cola (saccharin). Founder John Francis Queeny named
Monsanto Chemical Works after his wife, Olga Mendez Monsanto. Queenys father in law was Emmanuel Mendes de
Monsanto, wealthy financier of a sugar company active in Vieques, Puerto Rico and based in St. Thomas in the Danish
West Indies.
1902: Monsanto manufactures its first product, the artificial sweetener Saccharin, which Monsanto sold to the Coca-Cola
Company. The U.S. government later files suit over the safety of Saccharin but loses.
1904: Queeny persuaded family and friends to invest $15000, Monsanto has strong ties to The Walt Disney Company, it
having financial backing from the Orders Bank of America founded in Jesuit-ruled San Francisco by Italian-American
Roman-Catholic Knight of Malta Amadeo Giannini.
1905: Monsanto company was also producing caffeine and vanillin and was beginning to turn a profit.
1906: The governments monopoly on meat regulation began, when in response to public panic resulting from the
publication of Upton Sinclairs The Jungle, Teddy Roosevelt signed legislation mandating federal meat inspections. Today,
Salatin claims that agricultural regulation favors multinational corporations such as ConAgra and Monsanto because the
treasonous science that supports the USDA regulatory framework is paid for by these corporations, which continue to give
large grants to leading schools and research facilities.
1908: John Francis Queeny leaves his part-time job as the new branch manager of another drug house the Powers-
Weightman-Rosegarten Company to become Monsantos full-time president.
1912: Agriculture again came to the forefront with the creation of the DeKalb County Farm Bureau, one of the first
organizations of its kind. In the 1930s the DeKalb AgResearch Corporation (today MONSANTO) marketed its first hybrid
seed corn.
19141918: During WWI, cut off from imported European chemicals, Monsanto was forced to manufacture its own, and
its position as a leading force in the chemical industry was assured. Unable to import foreign supplies from Europe during
World War I, Queeny turned to manufacturing his own raw materials. It was then his scientists discovered that the
Germans, in anticipation of the war, had ripped out vital pages from their research books which explained various chemical
processes.
1915: Business expanded rapidly. Monsanto sales surpass the $1,000,000 mark for the first time.
1917: U.S. government sues Monsanto over the safety of Monsantos original product, saccharin. Monsanto eventually
won, after several years in court. Monsanto added more and more products: vanillin, caffeine, and drugs used as sedatives
 and laxatives. Bayer, The German competition cut prices in an effort to drive Monsanto out of business, but failed. Soon,
Monsanto diversified into phenol (a World War I -era antiseptic), and aspirin when Bayers German patent expired in 1917.
Monsanto began making aspirin, and soon became the largest manufacturer world-wide.
1918: With the purchase of an Illinois acid company, Monsanto began to widen the scope of its factory operations. More
than 500 of the 750 employees of the Monsanto Chemical Works, which has big contracts for the Government, went on
strike, forcing the plant to dose down.
1919: Monsanto established its presence in Europe by entering into a partnership with Graessers Chemical Works at Cefn
Mawr near Ruabon, Wales to produce vanillin, salicylic acid, aspirin and later rubber. Thereafter much of it was declared
surplus, and a contract was entered into with the Monsanto Chemical Co., of St. Louis, Mo., by which contract the Director
of Sales authorized the Monsanto Co. to sell for the United States its surplus phenol, estimated at 27521242 pounds, for a
market price to be fixed from time to time by the representative of the contracting officer of the United States, but with a
minimum price of 9 cents a pound.
1920: In its third decade, Monsanto expanded into basic industrial chemicals like sulfuric acid and other chemicals. The
petitioner was authorized to sell two tracts of land in the Common Fields of Cahokia, St. Clair County, containing 2.403
acres and 3.46 acres respectively, to the Monsanto Chemical Works for the sum of $1500. A postwar depression during the
early 1920s affected profits, but by the time John Queeny turned over Monsanto to Edgar in 1928 the financial situation
was much brighter.
1926: Environmental policy was generally governed by local governments, Monsanto Chemical Company founded and
incorporated the town of Monsanto, later renamed Sauget, Illinois, to provide a more business friendly environment for one
of its chemical plants. For years, the Monsanto plant in Sauget was the nations largest producer of polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs). And although polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were banned in the 1970s, they remain in the water
along Dead Creek in Sauget.
1927: Monsanto had over 2,000 employees, with offices across the country and in England. Shortly after its initial listing
on the New York Stock Exchange, Monsanto moved to acquire 2 chemical companies that specialized in rubber. Other
chemicals were added in later years, including detergents.
1928: John Queenys son Edgar Monsanto Queeny takes over the Monsanto company. Monsanto had gone public, a move
that paved the way for future expansion. At this time, Monsanto had 55 shareholders, 1,000 employees, and owned a small
company in Britain.
1929: Monsanto acquires Rubber Services Laboratories. Charlie Sommer joined Monsanto, and later became president of
Monsanto in 1960.

Mergers, acquisitions and failure have caused many single-letter symbols to change Monsanto began production of PCBs
(polychlorinated biphenyls) in the United States. PCBs were considered an industrial wonder chemical an oil that would
not burn, was impervious to degradation and had almost limitless applications.

Today PCBs are considered one of the gravest chemical threats on the planet. PCBs, widely used as lubricants, hydraulic
fluids, cutting oils, waterproof coatings and liquid sealants, are potent carcinogens and have been implicated in
reproductive, developmental and immune system disorders.

Monsanto produced PCBs for over 50 years and they are now virtually omnipresent in the blood and tissues of humans and
wildlife around the globe from the polar bears at the north pole to the penguins in Antarctica. These days PCBs are
banned from production and some experts say there should be no acceptable level of PCBs allowed in the environment.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says, PCB has been demonstrated to cause cancer, as well as a variety of other
adverse health effects on the immune system, reproductive system, nervous system and endocrine system.

1930s: DeKalb AgResearch Corporation (today MONSANTO) marketed its first **HYBRID** seed corn (maize).
1933: Incorporated as Monsanto Chemical Company
1934: I recognized my two selves: a crusading idealist and a cold, granitic believer in the law of the jungle Edgar
Monsanto Queeny, Monsanto chairman, 1943-63, The Spirit of Enterprise
1935: Edward ONeal (who became chairperson in 1964) came to Monsanto with the acquisition of the Swann
Corporation. Monsanto goes into the soap and detergents industry, starts producing phosphorus.
1938: Monsanto goes into the plastic business (the year after DuPont helped ban hemp because it was superior to their new
NYLON product made from Rockefeller OIL). Monsanto became involved in plastics when it completely took over
Fiberloid, one of the oldest nitrocellulose production companies, which had a 50% stake in Shawinigan Resins.
1939: Monsanto purchased Resinox, a subsidiary of Corn Products, and Commercial Solvents, which specialized in
phenolic resins. Thus, just before the war, Monsantos plastics interests included phenol-formaldehyde thermosetting
resins, cellulose and vinyl plastics.
1939-1945: Monsanto conducts research on uranium for the Manhattan Project in Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Charles Thomas, who
later served as Monsantos chairman of the board, was present at the first test explosion of the atomic bomb. During World
War II, Monsanto played a significant role in the Manhattan Project to develop the atom bomb. Monsanto operated the
Dayton Project, and later Mound Laboratories in Miamisburg, Ohio, for the Manhattan Project, the development of the first
nuclear weapons and, after 1947, the Atomic Energy Commission.
1940s: Monsanto had begun focusing on plastics and synthetic fabrics like polystyrene (still widely used in food packaging
and other consumer products), which is ranked 5th in the EPAs 1980s listing of chemicals whose production generates the
most total hazardous waste. From the 1940s onwards Monsanto was one of the top 10 US chemical companies.
1941: By the time the United States entered World War II, the domestic chemical industry had attained far greater
independence from Europe. Monsanto, strengthened by its several acquisitions, was also prepared to produce such strategic
materials as phosphates and inorganic chemicals. Most important was Monsantos acquisition of a research and
development laboratory called Thomas and Hochwalt. The well-known Dayton, Ohio, firm strengthened Monsanto at the
time and provided the basis for some of its future achievements in chemical technology. One of its most important
discoveries was styrene monomer, a key ingredient in synthetic rubber and a crucial product for the armed forces during
the war. Edward J. Bock joined Monsanto in 1941 as an engineer he rose through the ranks to become a member of the
board of directors in 1965 and president in 1968.
1943: Massive Texas City plant starts producing synthetic rubber for the Allies in World War II.
1944: Monsanto began manufacturing DDT, along with some 15 other companies. The use of DDT in the U.S. was banned
by Congress in 1972.
1945: Following WW2, Monsanto championed the use of chemical pesticides in agriculture, and began manufacturing the
herbicide 2,4,5-T, which contains dioxin. Monsanto has been accused of covering up or failing to report dioxin
contamination in a wide range of its products.
1949: Monsanto acquired American Viscose from Englands Courtauld family.
1950: Monsanto began to produce urethane foam which was flexible, easy to use, and later became crucial in making
automobile interiors.
1953: Toxicity tests on the effects of 2 PCBs showed that more than 50% of the rats subjected to them DIED, and ALL of
them showed damage.
1954: Monsanto partnered with German chemical giant Bayer to form Mobay and market polyurethanes in the USA.
1955: Monsanto acquired Lion Oil refinery, increasing its assets by more than 50%. Stockholders during this time
numbered 43,000. Monsanto starts producing petroleum-based fertilizer.
1957: Monsanto moved to the suburban community of Creve Coeur, having finally outgrown its headquarters in downtown
St. Louis, Missouri.
1957-1967: Monsanto was the creator of several attractions in Disneys Tommorrowland. Often they revolved around the
the virtues of chemicals and plastics. Their House of the Future was constructed entirely of plastic, but it was NOT
biodegradable. After attracting a total of 20 million visitors from 1957 to 1967, Disney finally tore the house down, but
discovered it would not go down without a fight. According to Monsanto Magazine, wrecking balls literally bounced off
the glass-fiber, reinforced polyester material. Torches, jackhammers, chain saws and shovels did not work. Finally, choker
cables were used to squeeze off parts of the house bit by bit to be trucked away.
1959: Monsanto sets up Monsanto Electronics Co. in Palo Alto, begins producing ultra-pure silicon for the high-tech
industry, in an area which would later become a Superfund site.
1960: Edgar Queeny turned over the chair of Monsanto to Charles Thomas, one of the founders of the research and
development laboratory so important to Monsanto. Charlie Sommer, who had joined Monsanto in 1929, became president.
According to Monsanto historian Dan Forrestal, Leadership during the 1960s and early 1970s came principally from
executives whose Monsanto roots ran deep. Under their combined leadership Monsanto saw several important
developments, including the establishment of the Agricultural Chemicals division with focus on herbicides, created to
consolidate Monsantos diverse agrichemical product lines.

1961-1971: Agent Orange was a mixture of 2,4,5-T and 2,4-D and had very high concentrations of dioxin. Agent Orange
was by far the most widely used of the so-called Rainbow Herbicides employed in the Herbicidal Warfare program as a
defoliant during the Vietnam War. Monsanto became one of 10-36 producers of Agent Orange for US Military operations
in Vietnam. Dow Chemical and Monsanto were the two largest producers of Agent Orange for the U.S. military. The Agent
Orange produced by Monsanto had dioxin levels many times higher than that produced by Dow Chemicals, the other major
supplier of Agent Orange to Vietnam. This made Monsanto the key defendant in the lawsuit brought by Vietnam War
veterans in the United States, who faced an array of debilitating symptoms attributable to Agent Orange exposure. Agent
Orange is later linked to various health problems, including cancer. U.S. Vietnam War veterans have suffered from a host
of debilitating symptoms attributable to Agent Orange exposure. Agent Orange contaminated more than 3,000,000 civilians
and servicemen. According to Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to
Agent Orange, resulting in 400,000 deaths and disabilities, plus 500,000 children born with birth defects, leading to calls
for Monsanto to be prosecuted for war crimes. Internal Monsanto memos show that Monsanto knew of the problems of
dioxin contamination of Agent Orange when it sold it to the U.S. government for use in Vietnam. Look at what the
EFFECTS of agent orange look like keep in mind it was used to remove leaves from the trees where AMERICAN
SOLDIERS were breathing, eating, sleeping.

1962: Public concern over the environment began to escalate. Ralph Naders activities and Rachel Carsons book Silent
Spring had been influential in increasing the U.S. publics awareness of activities within the chemical industry in the
1960s, and Monsanto responded in several ways to the pressure. Monsantos European expansion continued, with Brussels
becoming the permanent overseas headquarters.
1964: Monsanto changed its name to Monsanto Company in acknowledgment of its diverse product line. The company
consisted of 8 divisions, including petroleum, fibers, building materials, and packaging. Edward ONeal became
chairperson (came to Monsanto in 1935 with the acquisition of the Swann Corporation) was the first chair in Monsanto
history who had not first held the post of president. Monsanto introduced biodegradable detergents.
1965: While working on an ulcer drug in December, James M. Schlatter, a chemist at G.D. Searle & Company,
accidentally discovers aspartame, a substance that is 180x sweeter than sugar yet has no calories. AstroTurf (fake grass)
was co-invented by Donald L. Elbert, James M. Faria, and Robert T. Wright, employees of Monsanto Company. It was
patented in 1967 and originally sold under the name Chemgrass. It was renamed AstroTurf by Monsanto employee John
A. Wortmann after its first well-publicized use at the Houston Astrodome stadium in 1966. The evidence of widespread
contamination from PCBs and related chemicals has been accumulating and internal Monsanto papers show that Monsanto
knew about the PCB dangers from early on.
1967: Monsanto entered into a joint venture with IG Farben = the German chemical firm that was the financial core of the
Hitler regime, and was the main supplier of Zyklon-B gas to the German government during the extermination phase of the
Holocaust; IG Farben was not dissolved until 2003. Searle began the safety tests on aspartame that were necessary for
applying for FDA approval of food additives. Dr. Harold Waisman, a biochemist at the University of Wisconsin, conducts
aspartame safety tests on infant monkeys on behalf of the Searle Company. Of the 7 monkeys that were being fed
aspartame mixed with milk, 1 monkey DIED and 5 other monkeys had grand mal seizures.
1968: Edgar Queeny dies, leaving no heirs. Edward J. Bock (who had joined Monsanto in 1941 as an engineer) become a
member of the board of directors in 1965, and became president of Monsanto in 1968. With experts at Monsanto in no
doubt that Monsantos PCBs were responsible for contamination, Monsanto set up a committee to assess its options. In a
paper distributed to only 12 people but which surfaced at the trial in 2002, Monsanto admitted that the evidence proving
the persistence of these compounds and their universal presence as residues in the environment is beyond question the
public and legal pressures to eliminate them to prevent global contamination are inevitable. Monsanto papers seen by The
Guardian newspaper reveal near panic. The subject is snowballing. Where do we go from here? The alternatives: go out of
business; sell the hell out of them as long as we can and do nothing else; try to stay in business; have alternative products,
wrote the recipient of one paper. Monsanto became the first organization to mass-produce visible LEDs, using gallium
arsenide phosphide to produce red LEDs suitable for indicators. Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) ushered in the era of solid-
state lights. From 1968 to 1970, sales doubled every few months. Their products (discrete LEDs and seven-segment
numeric displays) became the standards of industry. The primary markets then were electronic calculators, digital watches,
and digital clocks.
1969: High overhead costs and a sluggish national economy led to a dramatic 29% decrease in earnings. Monsanto wrote a
confidential Pollution Abatement Plan which admitted that the problem involves the entire United States, Canada and
sections of Europe, especially the UK and Sweden. Monsanto produces Lasso herbicide, better known as Agent Orange,
which was used as defoliant by the U.S. Government during the Vietnam War. [Lasso's] success turns around the
struggling Agriculture Division, Monsantos web page reads.
1970s: Monsanto was a pioneer of optoelectronics in the 1970s. Although Bock had a reputation for being a committed
Monsanto executive, several factors contributed to his volatile term as president. Sales were up in 1970, but Bocks
implementation of the 1971 reorganization caused a significant amount of friction among members of the board and senior
management. In spite of the fact that this move, in which Monsanto separated the management of raw materials from
Monsantos subsidiaries, was widely praised by security analysts, Bock resigned from the presidency in February 1972.
Cyclamate (the reigning low-calorie artificial sweetener) is pulled off the market in November after some scientists
associate it with cancer. Questions are also raised about safety of saccharin, the only other artificial sweetener on the
market, leaving the field wide open for aspartame. Searle Company executives lay out a Food and Drug Sweetener
Strategy that they feel will put the FDA into a positive frame of mind about aspartame. An internal policy memo describes
psychological tactics Monsanto should use to bring the FDA into a subconscious spirit of participation with them on
aspartame and get FDA regulators into the habit of saying Yes.
1971: Neuroscientist Dr. John Olney (whose pioneering work with monosodium glutamate MSG was responsible for
having it removed from baby foods) informs Searle that his studies show that aspartic acid (one of the ingredients of
aspartame) caused holes in the brains of infant mice. One of Searles own researchers confirmed Dr. Olneys findings in a
similar study.
1972: The use of DDT was banned by U.S. Congress, due in large part to efforts by environmentalists, who persisted in the
challenge put forth by Rachel Carsons book Silent Spring in 1962, which sought to inform the public of the side effects
associated with the insecticide, which had been much-welcomed in the fight against malaria-transmitting mosquitoes.
1973: Monsanto developed and patented the glyphosate molecule in the 1970s. Monsanto began manufacturing the
herbicide Roundup, which has been marketed as a safe, general-purpose herbicide for widespread commercial and
consumer use, even though its key ingredient, glyphosate, is a highly toxic poison for animals and humans. After spending
tens of millions of dollars conducting safety tests, the G.D. Searle Company applies for FDA approval and submits over
100 studies they claim support aspartames safety. One of the first FDA scientists to review the aspartame safety data states
that the information provided (by Searle) is inadequate to permit an evaluation of the potential toxicity of aspartame. She
says in her report that in order to be certain that aspartame is safe, further clinical tests are needed.
1974: Attorney Jim Turner (consumer advocate who was instrumental in getting cyclamate taken off the market) meets
with Searle representatives in May to discuss Dr. Olneys 1971 study which showed that aspartic acid caused holes in the
brains of infant mice. The FDA grants aspartame its first approval for restricted use in dry foods on July 26. Jim Turner and
Dr. John Olney file the first objections against aspartames approval in August.
1975: After a 9-month search, John W. Hanley, a former executive with Procter & Gamble, was chosen as president.
Hanley also took over as chairperson.
1976: The success of the herbicide Lasso had turned around Monsantos struggling Agriculture Division, and by the time
Agent Orange was banned in the U.S. and Lasso was facing increasing criticism, Monsanto had developed the weedkiller
Roundup active ingredient: glyphosate) as a replacement. Launched in 1976, Roundup helped make Monsanto the
worlds largest producer of herbicides. RoundUp was commercialized, and became the worlds top-selling herbicide.
Within a few years of its 1976 launch, Roundup was being marketed in 115 countries.

The success of Roundup coincided with the recognition by Monsanto executives that they needed to radically transform a
company increasingly under threat. According to a recent paper by Dominic Glover, Monsanto had acquired a particularly
unenviable reputation in this regard, as a major producer of both dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) both
persistent environmental pollutants posing serious risks to the environment and human health. Law suits and environmental
clean-up costs began to cut into Monsantos bottom line, but more seriously there was a real fear that a serious lapse could
potentially bankrupt the company.

The FDA formally requests the U.S. Attorneys office to begin grand jury proceedings to investigate whether indictments
should be filed against Searle for knowingly misrepresenting findings and concealing material facts and making false
statements in aspartame safety tests. This is the first time in the FDAs history that they request a criminal investigation of
a manufacturer.

1977: Samuel Skinner leaves the U.S. Attorneys office on July 1st and takes a job with Searles law firm. (see Jan. 26th)
The Bressler Report, compiled by FDA investigators and headed by Jerome Bressler, is released. The report finds that 98 of
the 196 animals died during one of Searles studies and werent autopsied until later dates, in some cases over one year
after death. Many other errors and inconsistencies are noted. For example, a rat was reported alive, then dead, then alive,
then dead again; a mass, a uterine polyp, and ovarian neoplasms were found in animals but not reported or diagnosed in
Searles reports. U.S. Attorney Skinners withdrawal and resignation stalls the Searle grand jury investigation for so long
that the statue of limitations on the aspartame charges runs out. The grand jury investigation is dropped. (borderline
treason)
1979: The FDA established a Public Board of Inquiry (PBOI) in June to rule on safety issues surrounding NutraSweet.
1980: September 30, FDA Board of Inquiry comprised of 3 independent scientists, confirmed that aspartame might induce
brain tumors. The Public Board of Inquiry concludes NutraSweet should not be approved pending further investigations
of brain tumors in animals. The board states it has NOT been presented with proof of reasonable certainty that aspartame
is safe for use as a food additive. The FDA had actually banned aspartame based on this finding, only to have Searle
Chairman Donald Rumsfeld (Fords Secretary of Defense 1975-1977, Bushs Secretary of Defense 2001-2006) vow to
call in his markers, to get it approved in 1981. Monsanto established the Edgar Monsanto Queeny safety award in honor
of its former CEO (19281960), to encourage accident prevention.
1981: Donald Rumsfeld, CEO of Searle, states in a sales meeting that he is going to make a big push to get aspartame
approved within the year. Rumsfeld says he will use his political pull in Washington, rather than scientific means, to make
sure it gets approved. 3 of 6 in-house FDA scientists who were responsible for reviewing the brain tumor issues, Dr. Robert
Condon, Dr. Satya Dubey, and Dr. Douglas Park, advise against approval of NutraSweet, stating on the record that the
Searle tests are unreliable and not adequate to determine the safety of aspartame. Ronald Reagan is sworn in as President
of the United States. Reagans transition team, which includes Donald Rumsfeld, CEO of G. D. Searle, hand picks Dr.
Arthur Hull Hayes Jr. to be the new FDA Commissioner.
1982: Monsanto GMO scientists genetically modify a plant cell for the first time! Some 2,000 people are relocated from
Times Beach, Missouri, which was found to be so thoroughly contaminated with dioxin, a by-product of PCB
manufacturing, that the government ordered it evacuated. Dioxins are endocrine and immune system disruptors, cause
congenital birth defects, reproductive and developmental problems, and increase the incidence of cancer, heart disease and
diabetes in laboratory animals. Critics say a St. Louis-area Monsanto chemical plant was a source but Monsanto denies any
connection. The FDA announces that GD Searle has filed a petition that aspartame be approved as a sweetener in
carbonated beverages and other liquids.
1983: Diet Coke was sweetened with aspartame after the sweetener became available in the United States. The National
Soft Drink Association (NSDA) urges the FDA to delay approval of aspartame for carbonated beverages pending further
testing because aspartame is very unstable in liquid form. When liquid aspartame is stored in temperatures above 85F
degrees Fahrenheit, aspartame breaks down into known toxins Diketopiperazines (DKP), methyl (wood) alcohol, and
formaldehyde.

The National Soft Drink Association drafts an objection to the final ruling which permits the use of aspartame in
carbonated beverages and syrup bases and requests a hearing on the objections. The association says that Searle has not
provided responsible certainty that aspartame and its degradation products are safe for use in soft drinks. Consumer
Attorney, Jim Turner of the Community Nutrition Institute and Dr. Woodrow Monte, Arizona State Universitys Director of
Food Science and Nutritional Laboratories, file suit with the FDA objecting to aspartame approval based on unresolved
safety issues. FDA Commissioner Hayes resigns under a cloud of controversy about his taking unauthorized rides aboard a
General Foods jet. (General foods is a major customer of NutraSweet) Burson-Marsteller, Searles public relation firm
(which also represented several of NutraSweets major users), immediately hires Hayes as senior scientific consultant. The
first carbonated beverages containing aspartame are sold for public consumption.

1984: Center for Disease Control (CDC) Evaluation of consumer complaints related to aspartame use. (summary by B.
Mullarkey)
1985: Monsanto purchased G.D. Searle, the chemical company that held the patent to aspartame, the active ingredient in
NutraSweet. Monsanto was apparently untroubled by aspartames clouded past, including a 1980 FDA Board of Inquiry,
comprised of three independent scientists, which confirmed that it might induce brain tumors. The aspartame business
became a separate Monsanto subsidiary, the NutraSweet Company.
1986: Monsanto found guilty of negligently exposing a worker to benzene at its Chocolate Bayou Plant in Texas. It is
forced to pay $100 million to the family of Wilbur Jack Skeen, a worker who died of leukemia after repeated exposures.
1986: At a congressional hearing, medical specialists denounce a National Cancer Institute study disputing that
formaldehyde causes cancer. Monsanto and DuPont scientists helped with the study, whose author provided results to the
Formaldehyde Institute industry representatives nearly six months before releasing the study to the EPA, labor unions, and
the public. Monsanto spends $50,000 against Californias anti-toxics initiative, Proposition 65. The initiative prohibits the
discharge of chemicals known to cause cancer or birth defects into drinking water supplies.
1987: Monsanto conducted the first field tests of genetically engineered (GMO) crops. Monsanto is one of the companies
named in an $180 million settlement for Vietnam War veterans exposed to Agent Orange. Monsanto consolidated its
AstroTurf management, marketing, and technical activities in Dalton, Georgia, as AstroTurf Industries, Inc. U.S. hearing,
NutraSweet: Health and Safety Concerns, Committee on Labor and Human Resources, Senator Howard Metzenbaum,
chairman.
1988: A federal jury finds Monsanto Co.s subsidiary, G.D. Searle & Co., negligent in testing and marketing of its Copper
7 intrauterine birth control device (IUD). The verdict followed the unsealing of internal documents regarding safety
concerns about the IUD, which was used by nearly 10 million women between 1974 and 1986.
1990: EPA chemists allege fraud in Monsantos 1979 dioxin study, which found exposure to the chemical doesnt increase
cancer risks. Monsanto spends more than $405,000 to defeat Californias pesticide regulation Proposition 128, known as
the Big Green initiative. The initiative is aimed at phasing out the use of pesticides, including Monsantos product
alachlor, linked to cancer and global warming. With the help of Roundup, the agriculture division of Monsanto was
significantly outperforming Monsantos chemicals division in terms of operating income, and the gap was increasing. But
as Glover notes, while such a blockbuster product uncorks a fountain of revenue, it also creates an uncomfortable
dependency on the commercial fortunes of a single brand. Monsantos management knew that the last of the patents
protecting Roundup in the United States, its biggest market, would expire in the year 2000, opening the field to potential
competitors. The company urgently needed a strategy to negotiate this hurdle and prolong the useful life of its cash cow.
1991: Monsanto is fined $1.2 million for trying to conceal discharge of contaminated waste water into the Mystic River in
Connecticut.
1993: By April, the Department of Veterans Affairs had only compensated 486 victims, although it had received
disability **CLAIMS** from 39,419 veteran soldiers who had been exposed to monsantos Agent Orange while
serving in Vietnam. No compensation has been paid to Vietnamese civilians and though some compensation was
paid to U.S. veterans, according to William Sanjour, who led the Toxic Waste Division of the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), thousands of veterans were disallowed benefits because Monsanto studies showed that
dioxin [as found in Agent Orange] was not a human carcinogen. An EPA colleague discovered that Monsanto had
apparently falsified the data in their studies. Sanjour says, If [the studies] were done correctly, they would have
reached just the opposite result.
1994: the first of Monsantos biotech products to make it to market was not a GMO crop but Monsantos controversial
GMO cattle drug, bovine growth hormone called rBGH or rBST, Monsanto granted regulatory approval for its first
biotech product, a dairy cow hormone. Monsanto developed a recombinant version of BST, brand-named Posilac bovine
somatropin (rBST/rBGH), which is produced through a genetically engineered GMO E. coli bacteria. Synthetic Bovine
Growth Hormone (rBGH), approved by the FDA for commercial sale in 1994, despite strong concerns about its safety.
Since then, Monsanto has sued small dairy companies that advertised their products as free of the artificial hormone,
including Ben & Jerrys ice cream and most recently bringing a lawsuit against Oakhurst Dairy in Maine.
1995: Genetically engineered canola (rapeseed) which is tolerant to Monsantos Roundup herbicide was first introduced to
Canada. Today 80% of the acres sown are genetically modified canola. Monsanto is sued after allegedly supplying
radioactive material for a controversial study which involved feeding radioactive iron to 829 pregnant women. Monsanto
ranked 5th among U.S. corporations in EPAs Toxic Release Inventory, having discharged 37 million pounds of toxic
chemicals into the air, land, water and underground. Monsanto was ordered to pay $41.1 million to a waste management
company in Texas due to concerns over hazardous waste dumping. The Safe Shoppers Bible says that Monsantos Ortho
Weed-B-Gon Lawn Weed Killer contains a known carcinogen, 2,4 D. Monsanto officials argue that numerous studies have
found no link to cancer.
1996: Monsanto introduces its first biotech crop, Roundup Ready soybeans, which tolerate spraying of Roundup herbicide,
and biotech BT cotton engineered to resist insect damage.

As Monsanto had moved into biotechnology, its executives had the opportunity to create a new narrative for Monsanto.
They begun to portray genetic engineering as a ground-breaking technology that could contribute to feeding a hungry
world. Monsanto executive Robb Fraley, who was head of the plant molecular biology research team, is also said to have
hyped the potential of GMO crops within the company, as a once-in-a-generation opportunity for Monsanto to dominate a
whole new industry, invoking the monopoly success of Microsoft as a powerful analogy. But, according to Glover, the
more down-to-earth pitch to fellow executives was that genetic engineering offered the best prospect of preserving the
commercial life of Monsantos most important product, Roundup in the face of the challenges Monsanto would face once
the patent expired. Monsanto eventually achieved this by introducing into crop plants genes that give resistance to
glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup).

This meant farmers could spray Roundup onto their fields as a weedkiller even during the growing season without harming
the crop. This allowed Monsanto to significantly expand the market for Roundup and, more importantly, help Monsanto
to negotiate the expiry of its glyphosate patents, on which such a large slice of Monsantos income depended. With
glyphosate-tolerant GMO crops, Monsanto was able to preserve its dominant share of the glyphosate market through a
marketing strategy that would couple proprietary Roundup Ready seeds with continued sales of Roundup.

1996-1999: Monsanto sold off its plastics business to Bayer in 1996, and its phenylalanine facilities to Great Lakes
Chemical Corporation (GLC) in 1999. Much of the rest of its chemicals division was spun off in late 1997 as Solutia. This
helped Monsanto distance itself to some extent not only from direct financial liability for the historical core of its business
but also from its controversial production and contamination legacy.
1997: Monsanto introduces new GMO canola (rapeseed), GMO cotton and GMO corn (maize), and buys foundation seed
companies.

Monsanto spins off its industrial chemical and fibers business into Solutia Inc. amid complaints and legal claims about
pollution from its plants. Solutia was spun off from Monsanto as a way for Monsanto to divest itself of billions of dollars
in environmental cleanup costs and other liabilities for its past actions liabilities that eventually forced Solutia to seek
Chapter 11 bankruptcy. According to a spokesman for Solutia, (Monsanto) sort of cherry-picked what they wanted and
threw in all kinds of cats and dogs as part of a going-away present, including $1 billion in debt and environmental and
litigation costs. Some pre-bankruptcy Solutia equity holders allege Solutia was set up fraudulently as it was always
doomed to fail under the financial weight of Monsantos liabilities.

The New York State Attorney General took Monsanto to court and Monsanto was subsequently forced to stop claiming that
Roundup is biodegradable and environmentally friendly.

1998: Monsanto introduces Roundup Ready corn (maize). In the UK, Monsanto purchased the seed company Plant
Breeding International (PBI) Cambridge, a major UK based cereals and potato breeder, which Monsanto then merged with
its existing UK agri-chemicals and GMO research businesses to form Monsanto UK Ltd. Monsanto UK has carried out
field trials of glyphosate-tolerant sugar / fodder beet, glyphosate-tolerant oilseed rape, and glyphosate-tolerant and male
sterility / fertility restorer oilseed rape.

Survey of aspartame studies: correlation of outcome and funding sources, unpublished: Ralph G. Walton found 166
separate published studies in the peer reviewed medical literature, which had relevance for questions of human safety. The
74 studies funded by industry all (100%) attested to aspartames safety, whereas of the 92 non-industry funded studies, 84
(91%) identified a problem. 6 of the 7 non-industry funded studies that were favorable to aspartame safety were from the
FDA, which has a public record that shows a strong pro-industry bias.

1999: After international criticism, Monsanto agrees not to [PUBLICLY] commercialize Terminator seeds. Monsanto
opens its Beautiful Sciences exhibit at Disneyland. Monsanto sells their phenylalanine facilities to Great Lakes Chemical
Corporation (GLC) for $125 million. In 2000, GLC sued Monsanto because of a $71 million dollar shortfall in expected
sales.
2000: 5 pesticide companies, including Monsanto, controlled over 70% of all patents on agricultural biotechnology.
Monsanto had the largest share of the global GMO crops market. Since the inception of Plan Colombia, the US has spent
hundreds of millions of dollars in funding aerial sprayings of Monsantos Roundup herbicides in Colombia. The Roundup
is often applied in concentrations 26x higher than what is recommended for agricultural use. Additionally, it contains at
least one surfactant, Cosmo-Flux 411f, whose ingredients are a trade secret, has never been approved for use in the US, and
which quadruples the biological action of the herbicide. Not surprisingly, numerous human health impacts have been
recorded in the areas affected by the sprayings, including respiratory, gastrointestinal and skin problems, and even death,
especially in children. Additionally, fish and animals will show up dead in the hours and days subsequent to the herbicide
sprayings. Monsanto merges with Pharmacia & Upjohn, and changes its name to Pharmacia Corporation. Monsanto
Company restructures in deal with Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc; separates agricultural and chemicals businesses and becomes
stand-alone agricultural company.
2001: Retired Monsanto chemist William S. Knowles was named a co-winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his
research on catalytic asymmetric hydrogenation, which was carried out at Monsanto beginning in the 1960s until his 1986
retirement. Monsanto GMO crops accounted for 91% of the total area of GMO crops planted worldwide.
2002: Monsanto entered into an important agreement with DuPont. As a result of this agreement both companies agreed
to drop a raft of outstanding patent lawsuits against one another and to share their patented GMO crops technologies. Some
commentators see this agreement as constituting a pseudo-merger by stealth of the two companies GMO crops
monopolies which are too large to be permitted to merge.
2003: Jury fines Monsanto and its former chemical subsidiary, Solutia, Inc. (now owned by Pharmacia Corp.), agreed to
pay $600 million in August to settle claims brought by more than 20,000+ residents of Anniston, Alabama over the
severe contamination of ground and water by tons of PCBs dumped in the area from the 1930s until the 1970s. Court
documents revealed that Monsanto was aware of the contamination decades earlier. Solutia, Inc. (now owned by Pharmacia
Corp.) files Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
2004: Monsanto forms American Seeds Inc holding company for corn and soybean seed deals and begins brand
acquisitions. Monsanto filed lawsuits against many farmers in Canada and the U.S. on the grounds of patent infringement,
specifically the farmers sale of seed containing Monsantos patented genes. In some cases, farmers claimed the seed was
unknowingly sown by wind carrying the seeds from neighboring crops, a claim rejected in Monsanto Canada Inc. v.
Schmeiser. These instances began in the mid to late 1990s, with one of the most significant cases being decided in
Monsantos favor by the Canadian Supreme Court. By a 5-4 vote in late May 2004, that court ruled that by cultivating a
plant containing the patented gene and composed of the patented cells without license, the appellants (canola farmer Percy
Schmeiser) deprived the respondents of the full enjoyment of the patent. With this ruling, the Canadian courts followed
the U.S. Supreme Court in its decision on patent issues involving plants and genes.
2005: Monsanto has patent claims on breeding techniques for pigs which would grant them ownership of any pigs born of
such techniques and their related herds. Greenpeace claims Monsanto is trying to claim ownership on ordinary breeding
techniques. Monsanto claims that the patent is a defensive measure to track animals from its system. They furthermore
claim their patented method uses a specialized insemination device that requires less sperm than is typically needed.
Environmental, consumer groups question safety of Roundup Ready crops, say they create super weeds, among other
problems.
2006: In January, the South Korean Appeals Court ordered Dow Chemical and Monsanto to pay $62 million in
compensation to about 6,800 people. Organic farmers, concerned about the impact of GMO alfalfa on their crops, sued
Monsanto (Monsanto Company vs. Geertson Seed Farms). In response, in May 2007, the California Northern District
Court issued an injunction order prohibiting farmers from planting Roundup Ready alfalfa until the US Department of
Agriculture (USDA) completed a study on the genetically engineered crops likely environmental impact. As a result, the
USDA put a hold on any further planting of Roundup Ready alfalfa. The Public Patent Foundation filed requests with the
United States Patent and Trademark Office to revoke 4 patents that Monsanto has used in patent lawsuits against farmers.
In the first round of reexamination, claims in all 4 patents were rejected by the Patent Office in 4 separate rulings dating
from February through July 2007. Monsanto has since filed responses in the reexaminations. Monsanto buys several
regional seed companies and cotton seed leader Delta and Pine Land Co. Competitors allege Monsanto gaining seed
industry monopoly.
2007: Monsantos biotech seeds and traits (including those licensed to other companies) accounted for almost 90% of the
total world area devoted to GMOseeds. California Northern District Court issued an injunction order prohibiting farmers
from planting Roundup Ready alfalfa until the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) completed a study on the
genetically engineered crops likely environmental impact. As a result, the USDA put a hold on any further planting of
Roundup Ready alfalfa. USDA Dairy Survey estimated rBGH use at 15.2% of operations and 17.2% of cows.
2008: Monsanto sells Posilac business to Eli Lilly (polio vaccine manufacturer) amid consumer and food industry concerns
about the dairy cow hormone supplement. Acquires sugarcane breeding companies, and a Dutch hybrid seed company.
U.S. Department of Justice says it is looking into monopolistic power in the U.S. seed industry.
2009: Monsanto posts record net sales of $11.7 billion and net income of $2.1 billion for fiscal year. Monsanto announces
a project to improve the living conditions of 10,000 small cotton and corn farmers in 1,100 villages in India (keep in mind
that 100,000 small cotton farmers in India commit suicide by drinking Roundup AFTER massive GMO crop failures
bankrupted their families); donates cotton technology to academic researchers.
2010: Monsanto introduces their new brand Genuity. Farmers in South Africa report 80% of the GMO corn was
SEEDLESS at harvest time! Monsanto was named company of the year by Forbes magazine in January. Demand for milk
without using synthetic hormones has increased 500% in the US since Monsanto introduced their rBST product. Monsanto
has responded to this trend by lobbying state governments to ban the practice of distinguishing between milk from farms
pledged not to use rBST and those that do.
2011: Monsanto posts net income of $1 billion for fiscal 2010. OUCH! a 50% loss from 2009.
2012: 300,000 Farmers sued Monsanto, while the case was dismissed, the farmers are appealing. Nitro West Virginia
lawsuit against Monsanto is settled leaving Monsanto to pay an estimated 93 million dollars in damages. Monsanto found
guilty of poisoning French Farmer.

2013:

March 13: The Farmer Assurance Provision (nicknamed the Monsanto Protection Act) is discovered buried in the
587-page document, leading Sen. John Tester (D.-Mon.) to deliver a scathing speech on the Senate floor. The speech is
lauded by Monsanto opponents like Amy Goodman (Goodman touts Testers farm cred, noting that he lost several fingers
in a meat-grinding incident.)

March 26: Despite mounting opposition, Pres. Obama signs the resolution into law.
March 27: Farmers and activists converge on the White House to protest the provision.

April 2: Amid the furor, Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) makes a public apology. As chairwoman of the Senate
Appropriations Committee, she seems a bit sheepish for letting the rider through.

April 3: Even the Tea Party can get behind the protests. Apparently Monsanto rage can bridge the great political divide.

April 3: Dont worry everybody: Monsanto wants you to know they are doing just fine.

April 4: Politico outs the sneaky Senator responsible for inserting the rider. After weeks of lurking in the shadows, Sen.
Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) finally unburdened his soul.

September: The provision expires after only six months, but dont sleep on it. An initiative backed by this much power-
lobbying probably wont just disappear.

Today: Over 80% of the worldwide area devoted to GMO crops carries at least one genetic trait for (Monsantos Roundup)
herbicide tolerance. Herbicides account for about one-third of the global pesticide market. Monsantos glyphosate-resistant
(Roundup Ready) seeds have reigned supreme on the biotech scene for over a decade creating a near-monopoly for
Monsantos Roundup herbicide which is now off patent. Roundup is the worlds biggest selling pesticide and it has
helped make Monsanto the worlds 5th largest CHEMICAL company.