Navdanya: India, Chemicals, cotton and people

This second installment from the Navdanya team, part of a three-part article, shares the history of cotton production in India. Navadanya’s Seeds of Hope, Gardens of Hope project joined the 2021-2023 cohort of the Regenerosity Regenerative Capacity Development program.

—Regenerosity

India is a country blessed with bounties of diversity in its culture, food, people, and biodiversity. The uniquely diverse heritage drove travelers to set out on cross ocean adventures in search of this rich land. One such fine natural resource was the diversity of fiber India grew since ancient times, particularly cotton. In the 13th century Marco Polo, the Venetian merchant, explorer and writer was one of the earliest discoverers of one of the cotton plants. He was mesmerized how this plant produced magnificent fiber that could be woven into the finest muslin. In 1890, A Dictionary of Economic Products of India, by botanist Sir George Watt described at least eight different varieties of cotton

Post-independence, Green revolution (GR) introduced to India the high-yielding crops under the pretext of curbing hunger and poverty. Indian agricultural system was tagged as primitive and out-dated. Hoards of chemicals were forced upon farmers stating the soil was dead and did not provide nutrition for plants to grow. The multinationals kept claiming that without external inputs of high yielding varieties (HYV) of seeds and agricultural chemicals such as fertilizers and pesticides crop production and farmer incomes will suffer. Crop after crop of HYVs was being introduced. India is a major cotton producing country accounting to 22% cotton production in the world. Cotton is cultivated in 37% of the area across the world in India. Cotton cultivation supports approximately 60 million people who depend on it from stages of cultivation to post cultivation.

The illegal entry of Monsanto

In 1998 Monsanto entered a joint venture with Mahyco (Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company), the MMTB (Monsanto Mahyco Biotech (India) Pvt. Ltd. MMBT started the first illegal open field trials of genetically modified cotton seeds of Bt cotton in India and introduced Bt cotton in 40 locations across 9 states in the country. These trials were illegal since they were conducted without the approval of India's apex body GEAC - Genetic Engineering Approval Committee.

The date of sowing obtained from individual farmers' by RFSTE showed that the Bt cotton trials in the 40 locations across 9 states of India were not done before permission was granted by the Review Committee of Genetic Manipulation (RCGM). This was against scientific ethics with respect to the environment and was completely illegal. Gradually Monsanto, Syngenta, Aventis and DuPont controlled all the GM crops. Genetically modified crops have been introduced without understanding its ill effects on the ecosystem before its commercialisation.

A Trend of Bt cotton Failure

The increased cotton production trend from 2003-2005 was from native cotton farms and not Bt cotton cultivars. The trials of success that MMTB claimed in the early 2000s were made in selected farms that were already patronised by farmers in the past to try their hybrid seeds. So these farmers were handpicked and the trials were carried out in their farms. All costs were borne by MMTB. Regional festivals were organised by MMTB to attract farmers to these trial plots in surrounding villages. Fields with exceptional cotton boll production were showcased. The cost of the technology was although hidden and farmers were instead lured to exchange their native indigenous cotton seeds. Thus, leaving them exposed to buy market seeds every season as they had lost their native indigenous varieties.

GMO Bt cotton and Chemicals
Trap of Debts & Displacement
Seed is the basis of Farmers' livelihoods, the basis of agriculture, and the basis of life. In a span of 2 decades Monsanto plundered the indigenous cotton varieties of the Indian farmers. They instead introduced Bt cotton, and extracted extravagant royalties from the farmers. The indigenous cotton varieties were lost along with the other diversity of food crops that included millets, oilseeds and pulses that grew very well in the dry regions such as Vidarbha. Monsanto entered Indian farmlands illegally in 1998. By the early 2000s Monsanto depleted all the indigenous varieties of cotton and forced farmers to grow monocultures of Bt cotton. The price of cotton seeds rose from ₹5 - ₹9/kilogram to ₹ 1600 per 450 grams, which accounts to approximately 80000% increase in the cost of seeds. Moreover the Bt cotton seeds came with a package of pesticides and fertilizers. Fertiliser and pesticide inputs only increased over the years.

Monsanto entered Indian farmlands illegally in 1998. By the early 2000s Monsanto depleted all the indigenous varieties of cotton and forced farmers to grow monocultures of Bt cotton. The price of cotton seeds rose from ₹5 - ₹9/kilogram to ₹ 1600 per 450 grams, which accounts to approximately 80000% increase in the cost of seeds. Moreover the Bt cotton seeds came with a package of pesticides and fertilizers. Fertiliser and pesticide inputs only increased over the years.

Deaths from Suicide

These external inputs trapped farmers to take loans since they could not afford the costly seeds of Bt cotton or the chemicals which promised high yields and pest management. Farmers moved from their indigenous biodiverse farming which promised food and fibre to monocultures of Bt cotton. This shift in farming due to Bt cotton led to multiple emergencies – debts, bollworms becoming resistant and giving rise to secondary pests, hunger and malnutrition.

A heart wrenching poetry found written by a farmer before committing suicide. Source: Jaideep Hardikar, 2021.

Datta Chauhan of Bhamb village swallowed poison on November 5, 2013, because his Bt cotton crop did not survive the heavy rains in July that year. Shankar Raut and Tatyaji Varlu, from Varud village, both committed suicide due to the failure of their Bt Cotton. Tatyaji Varlu was unable to repay the Rs. 50,000 credit through which he received seeds. Ganesh left behind 7 family members in Chikni village, following the repeated failure of his Bt Cotton crop. Ganesh had no option but to buy more Bt Cotton and try his luck multiple times because Bt Cotton was the only cotton seed in the market, brilliantly marketed under multiple brand names through Licensing Arrangements that Monsanto has with Indian companies. Multiple packages, multiple promises but the contents of each of those expensive packets is the same: it’s all Bt. It’s vulnerable to failure because of too much or too little water, reliant on fertilizer, and susceptible to pests without pesticide, all additional costs. Farmers, with fields too small, do not choose Bt Cotton of their free will. That choice is dictated by the system Specter attempts to hail. Source: New Yorker.

Unable to repay banks and money lenders with high interest rates they sold their farmlands and in distress of land displacement and loan repayment were pushed to commit suicide. Until date there are over 400,000 farmers suicides recorded across India. In November 2021 there were 1056 suicides cases of farmers recorded from western Vidarbha alone. Thus, the farmers of Vidarbha and other Bt cotton growing regions in India were sucked into the a vicious cycle of debts and suicides. Broken families, displacement of land were the ultimate outcomes and no one took their responsibility.

It became evident that the yield under Bt cotton did not increase as claimed by Monsanto but the area of irrigated cotton that was added increased.

Bt cotton Failures end up with Mass Pesticide Poisoning Farmers

The GMO Bt cotton that was produced to deter the pests actually gave rise to new pests. The Bt cotton was engineered to repel the pink bollworms in cotton bolls, on the contrary it multiplied the resistant individuals and gave rise to sucking secondary pests which were not affected by the Bt toxin.

The farmers in Vidarbha were reduced to a mind-set by multinationals that chemical pesticides are the only option to manage pests on crops. With BT Cotton failing consecutively in 2017 desperate farmers moved further to mix multiple chemicals and spray which led one of the worst mass pesticide poisoning episodes in the history of Vidarbha in 2017. This came into the national media only after farmers’ death toll was over 10 in Yavatmal and the number of casualties was over 600. By the end of October 2017 over 800 farmers were hospitalized with mild to critical symptoms of poisoning and approximately 40 succumbed to it. Arni, Ghatanji, Kalamb, Pandharkawada were the other talukas following Yavatmal in pesticide poisoning. The scientific, academic and the multinationals blamed the lifestyle habits of farmers and claimed the pesticides or Bt cotton were not to be held responsible for the mass poisoning. Activists such as Mr. Kishore Tiwari pointed out that it was the complete fault of the American improved Bt cotton which failed the farmers who were forced to use not one but a mixture of pesticides in the hope to protect their produce. Mr. Tiwari pointed out that the Agricultural and Health Department should support the farmers through mitigation measures to transition from Bt Cotton to growing native varieties through organic farming rather than that of the multinationals that look only for their profits and brush off any responsibility of their GMO and chemical technology.

But actual trends shown by the textile ministry and agricultural ministry data showed how yield subsequently decreased even with increased insecticide usage. Source: Gutirrez & Rodrigues. 2019.

Cotton Production depends on Variability of Rain and not the Bollworms

Studies showed that cotton production is dependent on the variability of rainfall. Lower rainfall gives rise to more variability in lint production. Soil fertility is important factor but it is rainfall that ultimately governs lint production.

Cotton Production depends on Variability of Rain and not the Bollworms

Studies showed that cotton production is dependent on the variability of rainfall. Lower rainfall gives rise to more variability in lint production. Soil fertility is an important factor but it is rainfall that ultimately governs lint production. Scientists have demonstrated how multinationals have fooled the farmers by forcing them to adopt Bt cotton. Average costs of production/ha in India. Bt area indicated by solid line. Source: Gutirrez et al. 2019.

One can also observe from the latest review which shows that from 2014-2018 compared to previous years the yield and income have been dipping while the cost of production involving pesticides and fertilizers have been increasing over time. The cost of production and Acres, yield, income, pesticide usage, and fertilizer applications in 2014-2018 compared to those in the previous year (average Likert scale form -2 [strong decrease] to +2 [strong increase]) (n = 341-356, variation according to parameter and year) Source: Najork et al. 2022.