Enforcement or harassment? Seed innovator or seed police? Monsanto has had many controversial run-ins with farmers. The company claims it is merely protecting its patents – but farmers and other concerned groups say it is trying to take control of the world's food supply.

Farmers and various organizations have recently taken Monsanto, the St-Louis-based agribusiness giant, to task for its "take no prisoners" style of enforcing its patents and suing anyone who it suspects of violating them – mostly farmers in rural America. The headlines say it all: Farmer Strikes Out in Monsanto Replanting Suit, Agricultural Giant Battles Small Farmers, Grain Farmer Claims Moral Victory in Seed Battle Against Monsanto, Iowa AG Rakes Monsanto for Seed Licensing Info, Iowa State Settles Soybean Dispute with Monsanto.

Monsanto has put its controversial history as a top chemical manufacturer behind it (it produced a popular weed killer) – and has morphed into the largest seed company in the world. Its opponents now accuse it of wiping out the age-old practice of saving seeds after harvesting for re-planting in the spring and that, in its relentless pursuit of profits, is endangering the natural diversity of crops that mankind has depended on for centuries.

An investigative article by Donald Barlett and James Steele in Vanity Fair expounds on the controversy. Monsanto had developed genetically modified (GM) seeds that conveniently resists its own herbicide, Roundup, so farmers can spray fields with weed killer, yet not affect their crops. Indeed, more and more farmers and agri-corporations are using Monsanto's Roundup Ready seeds in the belief that they increase crop yields, save money and save time. But after the company had patented the seeds, it started requiring farmers who bought them to sign an agreement that they would not save the seeds after each harvest or sell them to other farmers. It was obviously a ploy to force farmers to buy new seed every year – and contribute to Monsanto's ballooning profits.

But that's not all. Critics are charging that Monsanto, in its zeal to enforce its patents, are using Gestapo-like tactics to coerce farmers who allegedly infringe on the patents. Incidents are on the record of Monsanto investigators showing up unannounced in farms and stores in rural America issuing threats, demanding records, and threatening violence…of the company tying up farmers' coops in expensive and extended lawsuits, playing farmers against other farmers and basically ignoring the fact that Monsanto seeds found in a farm could have gotten there via the wind.

"It's about protecting the patent, defending the patents, so farmers have the protection and can use these technologies over time."

That's how Monsanto spokesperson, Tami Craig Schilling, responded to critics' attacks in an article by Armen Keteyian in cbsnews.com. Furthermore, she added that with farmers as their customers, she cannot see Monsanto lying, deceiving, intimidating and harassing them to protect its patents.

In response to the Vanity Fair article, another Monsanto spokesman, Darren Willis, said, “Monsanto spends more than $2 million a day in research to identify, test, develop and bring to market innovative new seeds and technologies that benefit farmers. One tool in protecting this investment is patenting our discoveries and, if necessary, legally defending those patents against those who might choose to infringe upon them.” He added that, while the vast majority of farmers and seed dealers follow the licensing agreements, “a tiny fraction” does not, and that Monsanto is obliged to enforce its patent rights on those who “reap the benefits of the technology without paying for its use.”

Furthermore, it seems that Monsanto has quietly turned the tide in the war against genetically modified biotech crops. In an article by Brian Hindo in BusinessWeek, the author stated that the battle is being won not in scientific journals, but on the ground; that while the direst predictions of Monsanto critics have not yet materialized, multitudes of farmers around the globe are now planting biotech seeds.

Harassers and profiteers…or unapologetic defenders of intellectual property rights? Which is the real Monsanto?