Patent for a Pig

"The Earth is flat, pigs were invented by Monsanto, and genetically modified organisms are safe. Right."
Ok, it seems we may have narrowly missed this one. According to Monsanto's own website "In 2007, Monsanto sold Monsanto Choice Genetics to Newsham Genetics LC of West Des Moines, Iowa. The transaction was completed in November 2007, and Monsanto is no longer in the swine breeding business."
Thanks, perhap, in no small part to the efforts of Greenpeace
Greenpeace researcher uncovers chilling patent plans — It's official. Monsanto Corporation is out to own the world's food supply, the dangers of genetic engineering and reduced biodiversity notwithstanding, as they pig-headedly set about hog-tying farmers with their monopoly plans. We've discovered chilling new evidence of this in recent patents that seek to establish ownership rights over pigs and their offspring. In the crop department, Monsanto is well on their way to dictating what consumers will eat, what farmers will grow, and how much Monsanto will get paid for seeds. In some cases those seeds are designed not to reproduce sowable offspring. In others, a flock of lawyers stand ready to swoop down on farmers who illegally, or even unknowingly, end up with Monsanto's private property growing in their fields. Read more
The film: Patent For a Pig: The Big Business of Monsanto

But it seems there is still concern, at least in the EU. Excerpt from FarmingUK: "The German pig breeders fear that the patent will compel them to pay royalties to an American biotech company, Newsham Genetics, who acquired rights to a patent when they took over all Monsanto’s pig-breeding technology in 2007. The patent relates to a selection process that relies on a genetic marker for identifying pigs that fatten quickly and produce juicier meat. Only certain pigs carry the gene in question, which itself is not patented or patentable."
Ownership Change for Newsham Choice Genetics "This ownership change indicates our dedication and support for the Newsham Choice Genetics business and its ability to create genetic change at an unprecedented rate to meet the demands of the swine industry."
At the very least, it sounds as if the pig will go the way of the chicken- artificially obese with little flavor and questionable nutritional values. And from The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) .

Can Soylent Green be far behind?