Monsanto And The Deontological Ethical System

The great advancements in technology have been both beneficial and harmful in recent times. Corporations, in particular, have been taking advantage of new and enhanced technological discoveries for profit rather than for the benefits of society. This is considered to be immoral on the deontological ethical system. The word deontology originates from the Greek word Deon, which means duty. Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher who laid the core groundwork for the deontological ethical system. Kant claimed that individuals must act from duty in order to make morally right choices and that the motives of an individual determine whether the choice made is right or wrong. In this system, the consequences and results of the action do not matter.

It is a leading manufacturer of genetically modified seeds, founded in 1901. Originally, Monsanto manufactured food seasonings and additives such as vanillin. They then expanded into industrial chemicals such sulfuric acid. By 1940, they began to produce plastics such as polystyrene and synthetic fibers. In 1963, Monsanto was one of the first companies to genetically modify a plant cell and began running trials of genetically engineered crops. Monsanto was among the first corporations to merge the biotechnology industry with agriculture. This involved heavy research and development costs, which were recovered through the use of biological patents. However, Monsanto’s seed patenting model has been lambasted as bio piracy and a risk to the environment. The purpose of this essay is to demonstrate the way Monsanto used their genetically engineered seeds for profit and to show how it is immoral on the deontological ethical system. This will be achieved by discussing Monsanto’s cottonseed issue in India; the way Monsanto monopolized the global seed market and Monsanto’s corruptive practices in getting their genetically modified seeds

This made it challenging for conventional farmers to find non-genetically modified seeds as 90% of all seeds in the US were genetically modified. Monsanto is the leading corporation in manufacturing GM seeds due to the fact that they have won 674 biotechnology patents, which is more than any other corporation. The reason they win many patents is as a result of spending $2 million dollars on research and development. However, Monsanto also slapped patents on a number of common crop seeds, without the vote of the people or of congress. This resulted in Monsanto being the sole producer and owner of many types of seeds that are significant in supporting the world’s food supply. Consequently, farmers were forced to use GM seeds due to a lack of alternatives. As the global seed industry was a monopoly to Monsanto, they were able to charge higher prices and produce lesser quantities and alternatives. GM crops necessitate an increased demand for pesticides and herbicides and with the addition of higher costs; the outcome Monsanto created is an expensive crop that has the potential to be extremely harmful to animals and humans. In this way, Monsanto fails to meet the criteria of following the deontological ethical system. Their motives were, once again, unclean. In this case, even the consequence was not a positive outcome as the GM seeds could harm humans and animals. Monsanto did not act in a way that could