Monsanto offers discount to stimulate planting of 'refuge' in Brazil‏

Monsanto flared a commercial strategy to stimulate farmers to plant a "refuge" on areas of genetically-modified seed growth. Since this current crop, farmers will be able to get a discount of 30% to buy conventional cultivars in order to use it with Bt technology, which is resistant to caterpillars.

The refuge in Brazil consists in a practice that limits the use of part of the crop, separated from the main part, to plant conventional corn. The goal is to attract resistant insects and reduce the incidence and proliferation of pests over the crops. The practice has been left aside by Brazilian producers, something that could abbreviate the useful life of the technologies.

Tederson Galvan, manager of corn biotechnology at Monsanto, reminds that when the technology was introduced in Brazil, in 2007, up to 80% of areas used refuge in some regions. "Today nearly 20% of Brazilian farmers that use transgenic adopt the refuge. The reduction was intensified in the last two crop seasons, and this turned on a yellow light", details him.

Having 40% of the Brazilian market of corn seeds, Monsanto is conceding discounts to acquire conventional seeds along with the genetically-modified seeds. According to the manager, the company's objective is to maintain the promotion for the following seasons.

In Brazil, there still isn't the option of "refuge in the bag" - the sales of bags of transgenic cultivars that contain also mixed conventional seeds. The system is already offered by Monsanto to American growers and dispenses the planting of an specific area for refuge. The multinational affirms that there are ongoing studies to offer the alternative in the Latin American country, but there is not an specific date to reveal yet, indicates Galvan.

In order to participate at the campaign, farmers must reserve at least 10% of area of the corn crop to plant the refuge. For instance: in an area of 100 hectares planted with corn, 90 hectares can be planted with Bt technology corn, and at least hectares should be planted with conventional corn and/or with tolerance to the glyphosate herbicide, that is without Bt technology.

The manager of regulation at Monsanto, Renato Carvalho, explains that "the preservation and sustainability of technologies of corn depend on the implementation of the recommendations of Resistance Management of Insects, which bring refuge as its main component. Besides it, we recommend other important measures such as the Integrated Management of Pests, as early desiccation, area monitoring, crop rotation and other control options".

Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Supply has monitored the issue of refuge areas. The organism has articulated the creation of a decree that regulates the practice to establish serious criteria of oversight. According to minister Neri Geller, the goal is to implement the new parameters in the 2014/2015.