GMO Wheat Farmer Threatened

[Jim Meade / Iowa City]

"The eastern Oregon farmer was shaken. The volunteer wheat plants he’d sprayed with glyphosate didn’t die, and now grim investigators with the USDA wanted to know what he was doing with unapproved “Roundup Ready” wheat growing in his field.The grower was certain he hadn’t done anything wrong and was willing to cooperate. After all, he’d reported the finding when he could have tilled the plants under with no one the wiser. But the feds were talking potential criminal or civil penalties, and vociferous GMO opponents were sure to howl when they found out. The farmer was nervous. - See more at: http://www.capitalpress.com/article/20131001/ARTICLE/131009992/1318#sthash.YQ2N5RsO.dpuf"

What do you think?  Assuming this story is accurate, the farmer tried to do the right thing and was threatened because of it.  Would  you report such a sitation or, as they say about the neighbors dog chasing your sheep, SHOOT, SHOVEL and SHUT UP?

[clayton58]

Reading the article sounds like a promo for the lawyer with the farmer being a sidebar. But to answer your question it seems to be another case where one gets punished for doing the right thing. We see that way too often these days imo

[Ianbeer]

I agree clayton. The farmer may have had some contaminated seed and was totally unaware of it. It happened to a few growers of canola in Canada who got chased by Monsanto when they reported it too. He did the right thing I think, but maybe not the smart thing.

PS... Jim, the SSS comment is bang on in a case like this.... IF you know ahead how you might be treated by honestly reporting something odd in your field. I'll be the first to admit that I've done the SSS when it came to neighbors dogs repeatedly attacking calves on pasture during the night years ago. I simply had no other choice unfortunately, and I sure didn't feel good about it to be honest.... 😞

[johnaa]

The story does not tell a honest tale.  The gmo wheat did not come from a farmer, it came from a lab.  Can anyone guess whose?  They do a lot of advertising so can't have the conversation going toward the guilty.   Is the intent of the story to gain sympathy by conflating the story to sucker the farmer into defending big M? 

[buckfarmer]

What would you guys do if you found marijuana growing on your property. I've heard some say they just run the combine through it, and forget it, if it's in corn. For myself I guess it would depend on where it was located on the farm.

[Shaggy98]

I'd probably set it on fire. 

[buckfarmer]

Small portions at a time.