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Biotech / Medical : Monsanto Co. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jopawa who wrote (818)	1/4/1999 1:42:00 PM
From: jopawa	Respond to of 2539

Monday January 4, 12:03 pm Eastern Time Monsanto to make genetic changes to cotton ORLANDO, Fla, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Life sciences firm Monsanto Co is working on genetic changes to modify some of the properties of cotton plants, a senior company official said Monday. Speaking at the annual Beltwide Cotton conference here, Robert Fraley, co-president of the agricultural sector of agro-chemical conglomerate Monsanto, said his firm was working changing the color of cotton plants and on raising their resistance to disease. ''We are working on changing the fiber itself, both the color of the fiber and the strength and some of the physical properties for the milling industries,'' he said. Monsanto will be launching other insect resistant products over the next few years, he added. ''We are working on products for fungal disease control for enhancing yields,'' he said. Monanto and other life-sciene firms have led the development of genetically modified food and fibre crops, but European governments have raised doubts about the safety of the new plants, analysts noted.

To: jopawa who wrote (818)	1/4/1999 1:42:00 PM
From: jopawa	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2539

Monday January 4, 12:50 pm Eastern Time INTERVIEW-Monsanto says biotech food necessary By Rene Pastor ORLANDO, Fla, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Genetically modified food products will be vital to feed a hungry world despite qualms by environmentalists about their safety, a senior official of U.S.-based life sciences firm Monsanto Co (NYSE:MTC - news) said Monday. World demand for food, fiber and feed will likely double in the next 20 years, said Robert Fraley, co-president of the agricultural sector of agro-chemical conglomerate Monsanto. ''Biotech is going to be a powerful growth engine,'' he said in an interview with Reuters on the sidelines of the annual Beltwide Cotton conference here. Fraley said genetic modifications to boost yields and raise pest resistance in staple crops like rice, wheat, corn, soybeans, and fibre crops like cotton, will help fill the gap in demand at the time when amount of farmland around the world are projected to shrink or become too salty. ''Over the next 20 years we've got to double the food supply,'' he said. ''Half of that comes from just sheer population growth, largely in Asia and Africa. The other half comes from the dietary upgrading that's occurring in much of world as well,'' he said. Fraley said Monsanto will work harder to overcome objections by environmental groups in Europe to genetically modified food products like soybeans. ''Europe can't afford to isolate itself from the greatest innovation in agriculture history.'' He added, ''It's clear that we are re-evaluating our approaches and strategies. I think they were probably a little too naive, too Americanized at the beginning, and we are now working more closely with other European companies in addresssing the unique and specific issues that Europe faces.'' He dismissed fears that genetically modified products are not safe, saying they have undergone extensive testing and were approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the U.S. Agriculture Department (USDA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ''This represents some of the most carefully studied, thoroughly reviewed products ever launched,'' Fraley said. He said Monsanto plans to beef up its presence in Asia in 1999 and ''is starting to work on wheat and rice'' to match its achievements in modifying soybeans, corn and cotton. The company also has long-range studies on how to possibly apply genetic engineering and gene mapping technologies to palm oil plants. Monsanto will continue to acquire more companies in the farm sector where he said they have spent some $8 billion in the last two years. ''We will continue to make acquisitions in the future,'' he said, adding the firm will invest heavily in research and development of biotech products.