The Justice Department is investigating Monsanto, the agricultural biotechnology company that dominates much of the seed market, to see if it has violated federal antitrust laws. Enormous jumps in the cost of seeds prompted Justice officials to begin their inquiry.
Since 2001, the price of corn seeds has risen 135% and soybean seeds 108%, according to the
U.S. Department of Agriculture. Last year alone, corn seeds went up 32% and soybean seeds 24%. Farmers and other critics of Monsanto blame the skyrocketing costs on the company’s efforts to monopolize the genetically-engineered seed market.
-David Wallechinsky