December 1, 2000
		Monsanto CEO: "We're Sorry!" Verfaillie In an obvious ploy for consumer confidence, Monsanto Chief Executive Officer Hendrik Verfaillie conceded to a Farm Journal conference on November 27 that his monolithic corporation pushed too hard to get biotech into the food supply. "We were blinded by our own enthusiasm," he said, perhaps using 'enthusiasm' in the place of the less palatable 'greed'. Verfaillie acknowledged the concerns of activists and skeptical consumers by promising to back off from some of the more unsettling technologies, vowing to not use animal or human genes in modified crops. He said that Monsanto had "focused so much in getting this technology right for the grower that we didn't fully take into account the issues and concerns it raised for other people." Acknowledging the StarLink debacle (add link) involving biotech rival Aventis, Verfaillie also promised to sell genetically engineered products commercially only after they have been approved for human and animal consumption. Verfaillie's mea culpa came on the eve of an Environmental Protection Agency hearing (add link) on the Aventis request to approve StarLink for human consumption. Verfaillie's speech at the conference in Washington was intended to stem the growing tide of consumer distrust of genetically engineered products in the U.S. and abroad. Monsanto has spent tens of millions of dollars producing their high-tech seeds, and is confronting a skeptical if not downright hostile consumer response. "Monsanto's acknowledgment that they've rushed this technology is meaningful," said Julie Miles of the Genetically Engineered Food Alert. "But if Monsanto truly wants to respond to consumer concerns, it should support mandatory testing and mandatory labeling of genetically engineered foods." Verfaillie's speech also came after Monsanto's merger with Pharmacia and Upjohn to create Pharmacia Corp. Monsanto is now being referred to as the "New Monsanto."