electra-supply.comIn 2017, two United Nations experts called for a treaty to regulate hazardous pesticides, labeling it a “global human rights concern.” This advocacy was supported by scientific studies linking pesticides to serious health risks such as various cancers, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. However, the pesticide industry’s leading trade association dismissed these claims as “unfounded and sensational assertions.” Behind the scenes, industry supporters took a more aggressive approach.
Investigations have uncovered that derogatory profiles targeting UN experts Hilal Elver and Baskut Tuncak were kept on a private online platform used by pesticide company employees and their influential allies. This portal contains extensive personal information about numerous individuals perceived as threats to industry interests, including well-known food writers like Michael Pollan and Mark Bittman, Indian environmentalist Vandana Shiva, and Nigerian activist Nnimmo Bassey. Many of these profiles include sensitive information, such as family member names, phone numbers, home addresses, and property valuations.
Partially funded by U.S. taxpayer dollars, this profiling initiative aims to downplay the dangers of pesticides, discredit opponents, and hinder international policymaking, as revealed in court documents and emails retrieved by the nonprofit newsroom Lighthouse Reports, which worked with multiple media outlets on this investigation.
The Missouri-based firm v-Fluence led these operations, marketing its services as “intelligence gathering,” “proprietary data mining,” and “risk communications.” These revelations point to the establishment of a “private social network” designed to counter opposition against pesticides and genetically modified (GM) crops, while also disparaging organic farming methods.
Interestingly, records show that over 30 current U.S. government officials, many from the Department of Agriculture, are part of this network. Elver, now a university research professor and member of a UN food security committee, criticized the misuse of public funds, arguing they would have been better spent on scientific research into the health impacts of pesticides. “Instead of acknowledging scientific realities, they target the messenger. It’s almost unbelievable,” she remarked.
Pollan’s profile characterizes him as a strong opponent of industrial agriculture and an advocate for organic farming, complete with a detailed list of his criticisms and personal details about his family. Pollan expressed his outrage, saying, “Having an industry come after you for publishing a critical article is one thing; having your own government finance such a campaign is truly outrageous. This is a misuse of my tax dollars.”
Records reveal that Jay Byrne, a former Monsanto executive and founder of v-Fluence, spearheaded this initiative. He has been accused of advising U.S. officials and attempting to undermine opposition to products from major agrochemical companies. Byrne and v-Fluence are co-defendants in a lawsuit against Syngenta, a Chinese-owned agrochemical company, concerning the concealment of information related to health risks associated with its paraquat herbicides.
While Byrne denies the lawsuit’s allegations, claiming they stem from inaccuracies, he describes v-Fluence as focused on “information collection, sharing, analysis, and reporting.” He asserts that the profiles were constructed solely from publicly available information.
Byrne, who joined Monsanto during its aggressive push to promote GM crops, has reiterated his commitment to defending conventional agriculture against what he refers to as an “attack” from the “protest industry” that fosters fear about pesticides and GM crops. In a 2016 speech, he emphasized the industry’s need to reshape its narrative, stating, “We are almost always portrayed as the villains in these scenarios.”
Over the years, v-Fluence has maintained a complicated relationship with the U.S. government, obtaining contracts to support efforts aimed at gaining acceptance for GM crops in regions such as Africa and Asia. Notably, the firm received over $400,000 from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) between 2013 and 2019 to counter critics of “modern agricultural approaches.”
As investigations into these practices unfold, v-Fluence and its network have played a crucial role in efforts to undermine conferences focused on pesticide safety and the evaluation of GM crop impacts, frequently portraying speakers as “anti-science.” This trend was particularly evident at a 2019 conference planned in Nairobi, which faced pushback from individuals within the Bonus Eventus network.
Experts and advocates have voiced serious concerns about the ramifications of these revelations, suggesting that the collection of personal data on individuals opposing industry interests extends far beyond conventional lobbying. With ongoing scrutiny of pesticides in Kenya and other nations, these implications raise troubling questions about transparency and accountability surrounding government and corporate practices relating to agricultural policy.
