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St. Louis, Missouri
August 1, 2001
Achieving one of the five tenets
of the New Monsanto Pledge,
Monsanto today announced it had begun posting product safety
information for its current agricultural biotechnology products
on the
Monsanto Internet web site.
Acting on the "Transparency" commitment in the New Monsanto
Pledge, Monsanto has posted on its web site a series of detailed
food, feed and environmental safety summaries for Roundup Ready
soybean, YieldGard corn, Roundup Ready corn and Roundup Ready
cotton. The complete summaries are currently available through
the "Transparency" link on the Monsanto Pledge web site:
http://www.monsanto.com/monsanto/about--us/monsanto--pledge .
"One of the concerns that is frequently shared with us is that
information supporting the safety of our products isn't
accessible enough," said Hendrik Verfaillie, Monsanto President
and Chief Executive Officer.
"The safety evaluation of agricultural biotech products is
rigorous and unparalleled. However, we also recognize that no
amount of research and testing is convincing unless people know
about it," Verfaillie said. "We believe posting this safety
information is a major step forward in making information
available to anyone who has an interest in this technology."
In November, Verfaillie announced the New Monsanto Pledge, a
five-point declaration that governs how Monsanto will behave as
a new company. Among the five areas of commitment outlined in
the Pledge -- dialogue, transparency, sharing, respect and
delivering benefits -- is the commitment: "We commit to
transparency by making published scientific data and data
summaries on product safety and benefits publicly available and
accessible."
In addition to the four product safety summaries currently
available, Monsanto will post similar information in the coming
months for its other agricultural biotech products.
The "Transparency" section of the New Monsanto Pledge website
also features comprehensive lists of published scientific
literature on benefits associated with agricultural
biotechnology. The section includes a product- by-product list
of scientific papers on the benefits of Monsanto's agricultural
biotech products that have been published to date, as well as a
list of references published by Monsanto scientists in 2000.
"We're committed to making information available and more
accessible to people who are interested in the technology but
may not be able to easily access all of the published scientific
information," said Dr. Roy Fuchs, director of Regulatory Science
for Monsanto and leader of the company's "Transparency" working
team.
"We believe making this information more accessible has
significant value for the scientific community and the public
because access to comprehensive and scientifically sound
information is essential for advancing an informed discussion
about this technology," he said.
Each of the product safety summaries includes information on
molecular characterizations, food and feed safety assessments,
compositional analyses and nutritional assessments, and
environmental assessments. The posted information is a summary
of the information reviewed by regulatory authorities throughout
the world, providing a detailed summary of the broad array of
data
and information that is developed for each agricultural biotech
product.
While much of the safety information has been published in
scientific journals, this is the first time the information has
been collected in a single location and distributed through an
easily accessible venue like the Internet.
The New Monsanto Pledge is a
commitment to people around the world, that the company will
develop and sell our products in a safe and socially responsible
manner. More specifically, Monsanto is committed to dialogue
with interested parties; transparency with information and
regulation; respect for religious, cultural and ethical
concerns; sharing of knowledge and technology; and benefits for
growers and the environment. To see the pledge in its entirety
or for more information, visit:
http://www.monsanto.com/monsanto/about--us/monsanto--pledge/default.htm.
Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) is a leading global provider of
technology- based solutions and agricultural products that
improve farm productivity and food quality. For more information
on Monsanto, see:
http://www.monsanto.com. x
Company news release
N3692
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