Bayer’s New Soybean Tolerates Five Herbicides
Updated
When ordering edamame in a restaurant, how often do you stop and think, “I wonder where the soybeans I am about to eat came from?” If this is something you currently do not ponder, you certainly should, especially if Bayer’s new Vyconic soybeans—with an anticipated market introduction by the 2027 planting season—make it through the regulatory process. Bayer’s genetically engineered Vyconic soybeans will allow the company to use five toxic herbicides, allowing the billion-dollar glyphosate maker to “quadruple the available options that growers can utilize in the field to combat the weeds that are getting ever more difficult to control.”
That’s right, Bayer has engineered a soybean trait that is one step ahead of the challenges it created in the first place. With “unprecedented” herbicide tolerance, Bayer’s plans for its Vyconic Soybeans to “transform how farmers approach weed management” by making them tolerant to five different weed killers: dicamba, glufosinate, mesotrione, 2,4-D, and glyphosate. As the first company to initially market heroin as a non-addictive cough suppressant between 1898 and 1910, the leaders at Bayer are constantly looking for ways to poison us under the guise of helping society thrive. Vyconic soybeans are no different. Brian Naber, president, Crop Science North America and Australia/New Zealand Region at Bayer, remarked:
“The introduction of Vyconic soybeans is a testament to Bayer’s unwavering dedication to innovation in agriculture. We understand the challenges farmers face with weed control, and this technology underscores Bayer’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge solutions that help to meet industry challenges and the evolving needs of farmers in the U.S. and worldwide.”
A global enterprise, Bayer states it is rooted in core competencies in the life science fields of nutrition and health care, with a mission of “Health for all, Hunger for none.” But is anyone studying the health effects of eating soybeans that have been genetically altered to withstand the toxic effects of five potent herbicides designed to destroy weeds while also tragically killing bees and, ultimately, contributing to the development of herbicide-resistant weeds which require more powerful or more toxic chemicals in the future. And guess what? No easy-to-find research exists on Bayer’s website related to studies on the injuries set to befall those who consume GMO-tainted Vyconic soybeans if the bean receives regulatory approval.
Make no mistake, Vyconic soybeans and the toxic chemical concoction that makes them resistant to five potent poisons will undoubtedly increase the risk in humans (and certainly in animals as well, as soy is a cheap filler for pet foods) of developing a long list of ailments that scientific studies have linked to herbicides. It seems glaringly irresponsible for Bayer to make no mention of that significant fact.
For those unaware, the American Soybean Association states that animal agriculture is the soybean industry’s largest customer, with 90 percent of U.S. soybeans being used as a protein source for animal feed. Thus, in addition to your pets potentially consuming Vyconic soybeans in the not-too-distant future, the beef, chicken, or pork available to consumers may have also been fed the toxic soybeans.
Big Pharma’s influence on our health and food supply is highly troubling. With its patent on its best-seller, the dangerous blood thinner Xarelto, expiring this month, Bayer currently has at least ten “blockbuster” technologies it plans to launch within the next ten years, including Vyconic soybeans. The expiration of Xarelto’s patent could strip Bayer of roughly $600 million annually in Medicare revenue alone, with generics expected to capture 80 percent of the market within two years. Thus, Bayer is aggressively trying to stay in the lucrative game of tinkering with nature, our food, and overall health.
As it hopes to dominate soybeans by 2027, Bayer’s future also hinges on what it surely hopes will become its next Xarelto—its prostate cancer treatment drug Nubeqa, its chronic kidney disease drug Kerendia, and its novel anticoagulant targeting atrial fibrillation drug (currently in Phase III trials), Asundexian. The company also has an experimental menopause drug in a late-stage trial for use in women taking medications to treat or prevent breast cancer. According to analysts, if Asundexian succeeds and Nubeqa hits its peak sales target, Bayer could stabilize its pharmaceutical division by 2027. But failure on either front risks years of stagnation as its Xarelto gravy train comes to a halt.
But, hey, considering that Bayer makes glyphosate and has a new Vyconic soybean to tolerate glyphosate and five other chemicals in the works, the company just may be in luck with a new set of customers if its toxic soybean receives regulatory approval. Why? For starters, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies herbicides like glyphosate, for example, as “probably carcinogenic to humans,” suggesting links to kidney disease, heart problems, and, no doubt, prostate problems. Indeed, a devious plan for instant, lifelong customers.
But this type of lucrative scheme at the expense of hardworking Americans—which was exposed during the pandemic—is not OK. We see it all too clearly now. Instead of contaminating the earth and all living things to grow GMO soybeans, Bayer could certainly use its billions to support farmers with regenerative agriculture practices. It could also develop truly natural biological crop protection products that, instead of poisons, use natural sources like microbes, botanicals, and pheromones, thus reducing the need for synthetic pesticides and herbicides and reducing their devastating environmental impacts. Yet, Bayer’s current partnership, focused on a synthetic agriculture biologics platform, doesn’t cut it for a healthy world. Instead, it seems in line with the agenda at play during the COVID pandemic, which did nothing to promote the power of a healthy body and earth. Sadly, it was instead focused on merging humans with technology. Looks like it is time to ditch soy and cut ties with Bayer.
