Era: I was a farmer at the foot of Yaoling Mountain

New Year's Day.

Fang Wei and Pan Lianhua visited the Yao village to see the elderly living alone and the five-guarantee households.

This is a tradition that has been maintained for many years.

in the afternoon.

Fang Wei accompanied Binbin to Sanqing Temple to visit Master Sun. Master Sun was still healthy and vigorous, truly displaying the demeanor of a highly accomplished Taoist master.

The two had dinner at the Taoist temple before driving back home.

the next day.

The staff from the research institute and the Yao village breeding team returned to their posts one after another, and everyone immediately got busy.

Genetic testing of genetically modified soybean seeds has not been very successful. Therefore, while China has considerable technological expertise in this area, it still lags behind international giants like Monsanto.

The gene sequences for high yield and disease resistance have been identified, but the remaining work may take a long time.

While helping Fang Wei with her daily official duties, Yang Feng also kept an eye on things at the research institute from time to time.

Fang Wei himself stayed in the experimental field of Yao Village, leading everyone to plant genetically modified soybeans and cultivate [Nan Dou 339] soybean seeds in the greenhouse.

The Yao village currently has 60 mu of experimental fields, of which 50 mu can be used to cultivate [Nan Dou 339].

Once the genetically modified soybeans and [Nan Dou 339] entered a stable growth period, Fang Wei stopped monitoring them. This cultivation cycle was approximately 30 to 35 days, and undoubtedly, he had adjusted the accelerated growth attribute again.

After the Lantern Festival.

Fang Wei hurriedly arrived at the research institute.

"Secretary, our researchers have unexpectedly discovered a gene segment in Monsanto genetically modified soybean seeds that we do not understand. We cannot evaluate it at the moment, but we will focus our research on this segment."

The person in charge reported the progress of the gene testing to Fang Wei. To be honest, they were quite lucky to have discovered the problem so quickly.

However, the significance of this discovery is unclear because it cannot be determined, so it requires long-term research.

Fang Wei was familiar with gene technology, but he wasn't exactly a technical expert. He guessed that this gene fragment might not be what he was looking for, and if he couldn't explain it, it was useless.

He still pins his hopes on planting verification, hoping to discover problems before spring planting begins.

If farmers plant the free genetically modified soybean seeds, and the soil is severely damaged, it will take at least one or two years to recover.

This would flood the domestic market with Monsanto's genetically modified soybeans.

Domestic soybean growers may abandon soybean cultivation because of this, which is exactly what the giants want.

From then on, they could wield immense power in the domestic soybean market, thereby controlling the edible oil market and even influencing pork prices—it's terrifying to even think about.

Therefore, this matter is not isolated, but involves many aspects.

"Director Sun, I need your technical support."

morning.

Fang Wei called Sun Shili and made it clear that he needed the other party's help.

He then explained the issue of genetically modified soybeans, saying that he felt there might be problems with the free distribution of genetically modified soybeans and that he needed to obtain the genetic testing results as soon as possible.

It appears that the institute will have difficulty completing this task on its own.

“Sure! Send me the samples and test data. If our Crop Research Institute can't solve the problem, I can ask other research institutions for help.”

Sun Shili readily agreed and even offered a better solution.

This is the benefit of having a wide network of connections; he can not only mobilize the resources of the Institute of Physics, but also the resources of other research institutions.

"Thanks! I won't waste any more time on small talk. I'll treat you to drinks later."

Fang Wei and Sun Shili have a special relationship, and there's no need for them to be overly polite to each other.

After hanging up the phone, he still felt uneasy, so he called Professor Ma again and asked him to help with the testing.

“No problem! We have a joint research institute with the island nation. I’ll make a trip there myself and see if I can help you.”

Professor Ma agreed without hesitation, and Fang Wei quickly sent the sample out by express after the call ended.

Time flies.

In the blink of an eye, the Awakening of Insects has arrived.

The genetically modified soybeans cultivated in the Yao village have matured, and Wang Songlin led his team to harvest them.

"Third Brother, the yield of this soybean is really good, about 900 jin per mu. In addition, [Nan Dou 339] performs even better, with a yield of 950 jin per mu, and the quality is better and the oil yield is higher."

The data for these two types of soybeans were as expected, consistent with the information Fang Wei had.

But that wasn't his main concern. While listening to Wang Songlin's rambling, he squatted down in the one-acre experimental field and carefully observed the soil conditions.

He then got up and called the head of the research institute, asking them to send someone to collect soil samples for testing. He had already discovered some problems, but to obtain more detailed information, scientific verification was necessary.

The research institute was very experienced in soil testing and quickly produced the test report.

"hiss"

After reading the report, Fang Wei couldn't help but gasp. Monsanto was ruthless; he had only planted one season of genetically modified soybeans, and the soil fertility was basically exhausted. This was a problem that could not be solved by applying more fertilizer.

This land needs to be left fallow for a long time, and it also needs to be continuously fertilized to improve the soil quality.

It's roughly the case that planting one season requires a year of fallow.

That bastard Monsanto was really wicked; he completely used technology to cheat people. No wonder people in later generations have such a strong aversion to genetically modified foods.

"Chairman, isn't Monsanto committing a crime?"

When Yang Feng saw the test report in Fang Wei's office, he was completely devastated.

"It's a crime, but the question is, do you have evidence? Planting verification is hardly convincing evidence unless you can crack the genetic code of Monsanto's genetically modified soybean seeds, but that's very difficult!"

Fang Wei shook his head helplessly. So far, in addition to the company's breeding research institute, many top institutions, including the Crop Research Institute, have participated in the work of gene testing and gene code deciphering for genetically modified soybean seeds.

With so many organizations involved, no substantial progress has been made, and he has given up hope.

Technology is a matter of 'if it works, it works; if it doesn't, it doesn't.' There's really nothing you can do about it.

It seems that the gap between China and foreign countries in biotechnology, genetic engineering, and transgenic technology is indeed very large, even larger than Fang Wei imagined.

"Chairman, what should we do? Spring planting is just around the corner, we can't let farmers across the country suffer losses for nothing, can we?"

Yang Feng was getting a little anxious. Without evidence, there was no way to report it, and even if he did, the relevant departments couldn't do anything about Monsanto.

“Reporting it is definitely not an option, but we can spread the word through our sales channels. We have detailed planting records, so it's not considered spreading rumors, and we're not afraid of being sued by Monsanto.”

Fang Wei also felt helpless and could only pin her hopes on the war of public opinion.

Of course, there are still risks involved in doing this. If Monsanto targets you, you'll inevitably face legal trouble.

Therefore, Fang Wei plans to find a few reliable people and disseminate the planting records of the Yao village experimental fields. Even if a lawsuit arises, it will only involve individuals and will not affect Yaoling Agriculture or the Yaoling Group.

"Chairman, leave this matter to me, I will handle it perfectly."

Yang Feng accepted the task and then went to find Wang Sanqi and Wang Songlin.

The people of Yao village are trustworthy. After discussing for a long time, the three of them finally found a suitable candidate and then spread the news through the client.

As for how effective it will be, that's not something Fang Wei can decide.

Even if some people heard the news, they still wouldn't believe Monsanto's conspiracy because of the lure of receiving free genetically modified soybean seeds.

People sometimes only believe what they see with their own eyes, and only after suffering losses do they realize their mistakes.

Regardless, this news caused a huge stir among customers who have long used [Nan Dou 336] soybean seeds. They have been growing [Nan Dou 336] for many years and therefore have great confidence in Yaoling Agriculture's soybean seeds.

Now that they've heard this shocking news, it's natural to reject Monsanto's genetically modified soybean seeds.

Once prejudice is formed, the other party's free distribution of seeds becomes a mistake, making them even more hesitant to switch soybean seeds.

Yaoling Agriculture timely released data on its third-generation high-yield soybean seed, 【Nan Dou 339】, and promoted it extensively. This was to compete with Monsanto's genetically modified soybean seeds, giving growers more options.

Despite all that Fang Wei did, quite a few farmers still took advantage of the situation and accepted Monsanto's free soybean seeds.

"Assistant Yang, don't be discouraged. At least we've retained our clients; after all, not everyone can resist the temptation of something for free. Also, I'll be going to a meeting in Beijing soon, and I'll bring up this issue there."

Faced with this situation, Yang Feng was truly disheartened.

Instead, Fang Wei comforted the other party, telling him not to lose heart, as the war had only just begun and the outcome was uncertain.

"Chairman, we don't have any evidence. Isn't it inappropriate to bring this up at such a high-level meeting?"

Yang Feng was startled, wondering if Fang Wei was taking a risk.

"It's alright! It's only at meetings like these that it's okay to make suggestions. My job is to raise questions; whether the relevant parties adopt them or not is another matter."

Fang Wei waved her hand, indicating that it was alright.

The two were talking in the office when Lin Bingkun and Fang Yi walked in from outside.

With spring planting just around the corner, the two were going to the production line to supervise the work, so they came over to discuss the breeding of [Nan Dou 339].

"Let's not talk about that yet, Mr. Fang. On behalf of the company's breeding research institute, please report the issue of the Monsanto genetically modified soybean seeds to the Provincial Department of Agriculture. This is not a whistleblower report, but simply a factual report to higher authorities."

Fang Wei was just looking for Fang Yi when the other party arrived.

He and Yang Feng had already written the report; now they just needed to submit it to the Provincial Department of Agriculture through Yaoling Agriculture. (End of Chapter)