The country's extensive reserves of traditional seed varieties (barley, teff, chick peas, sorghum, etc)
were being appropriated,
genetically manipulated
and patented by the agribusiness conglomerates:

"Instead of compensation and respect, Ethiopians
today are ...getting bills from foreign
companies that have "patented" native species and
now demand payment for their use."

13 The foundations of a "competitive seed industry" were laid under IMF and World Bank auspices.
14 The Ethiopian Seed Enterprise (ESE), the government's seed monopoly
joined hands with Pioneer Hi-Bred in the distribution of
hi-bred and genetically modified (GM) seeds
(together with hybrid resistant herbicide) to smallholders.

In turn, the marketing of seeds had been transferred to a network of private contractors
and "seed enterprises"
with financial support and technical assistance from the World Bank.

The "informal" farmer-to-farmer seed exchange was slated to be converted
under the World Bank programme into a "formal" market
oriented system of "private seed producer-sellers." 15

In turn, the Ethiopian Agricultural Research Institute (EARI)
was collaborating with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)
in the development of new hybrids
between Mexican and Ethiopian maize varieties.

16 Initially established in the 1940s by Pioneer Hi-Bred International
with support from the Ford and Rockefeller foundations,
CIMMYT developed a cosy relationship with US agribusiness.

Together with the UK based Norman Borlaug Institute,
CIMMYT constitutes a research arm as well as a mouthpiece of the seed conglomerates.

According to the Rural Advancement Foundation (RAFI)
"US farmers already earn $150 million annually by growing varieties of barley developed from Ethiopian strains.
Yet nobody in Ethiopia is sending them a bill." 17 Impacts of Famine

In return, US surpluses of genetically engineered maize (banned by the European Union) were being dumped on the horn of Africa in the form of emergency aid. The US had found a convenient mechanism for "laundering its stocks of dirty grain". The agribusiness conglomerates not only cornered Ethiopia's commodity exports, they were also involved in the procurement of emergency shipments of grain back into Ethiopia. During the 1998-2000 famine, lucrative maize contracts were awarded to giant grain merchants such as Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and Cargill Inc. 10 Laundering America's GM Grain Surpluses

US grain surpluses peddled in war-torn countries also served to weaken the agricultural system. Some 500,000 tons of maize and maize products were "donated" in 1999-2000 by USAID to relief agencies including the World Food Programme (WFP) which in turn collaborates closely with the US Department of Agriculture. At least 30% of these shipments (procured under contract with US agribusiness firms) were surplus genetically modified grain stocks. 11

Boosted by the border war with Eritrea and the plight of thousands of refugees, the influx of contaminated food aid had contributed to the pollution of Ethiopia's genetic pool of indigenous seeds and landraces. In a cruel irony, the food giants were at the same time gaining control - through the procurement of contaminated food aid - over Ethiopia's seed banks. According to South Africa's Biowatch: "Africa is treated as the dustbin of the world...To donate untested food and seed to Africa is not an act of kindness but an attempt to lure Africa into further dependence on foreign aid." 12

Moreover, part of the "food aid" had been channelled under the "food for work" program which served to further discourage domestic production in favour of grain imports. Under this scheme, impoverished and landless farmers were contracted to work on rural infrastructural programmes in exchange for "donated" US corn.

Meanwhile, the cash earnings of coffee smallholders plummeted. Whereas Pioneer Hi-Bred positioned itself in seed distribution and marketing, Cargill Inc established itself in the markets for grain and coffee through its subsidiary Ethiopian Commodities.12 For the more than 700,000 smallholders with less than 2 hectares that produce between 90 and 95% of the country's coffee output, the deregulation of agricultural credit combined with low farmgate prices of coffee had triggered increased indebtedness and landlessness, particularly in East Gojam (Ethiopia's breadbasket).

Biodiversity up for Sale

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