Reuters via Agnet Jan 7/04

Monsanto and Pioneer, the world's two biggest seed companies, were cited as saying on Tuesday they did nothing wrong in discussing pricing for genetically modified seeds in the 1990s and called allegations of illicit activity unfounded.

Doyle Karr, spokesman for Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc., a unit of DuPont Co. was quoted as saying, "At no time did we engage in any illegal or inappropriate activity."

The story says that the response came after a front-page article in the New York Times on Tuesday said interviews with former executives from Pioneer and from Monsanto Co., as well as information contained in various documents, showed that in the 1990s Monsanto tried to control the market for genetically altered corn and soybean seeds.

Monsanto spokeswoman Lori Fisher was cited as saying that Monsanto's discussions with Pioneer were a necessary aspect of the licensing arrangement between the two with Monsanto as the developer of the biotech characteristics, adding, "Monsanto's discussions ... regarding the use and value of our technology were appropriate and were conducted under the close advice of legal experts in marketing competition."
She said prices vary widely for seeds containing Monsanto technology. Roundup Ready soybeans, a particularly popular biotech product, generally were priced in a range of $14 to $29 a bag in 2003, she said.