This is going to annoy the bacon lovers!

Monsanto has applied for a patent that would give them world-wide control over pig breeding. Not some special space-age, genetically enhanced, improved-by-Monsanto pig breeding, just normal old pig breeding.

Filed at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in Geneva the patent application stakes a claim on pig rights in more than 160 countries, including the UK, Germany, the US, Russia, Brazil, Australia, China and India. If granted, US-based Monsanto will be in a position to prevent breeders and farmers from breeding pigs with certain characteristics or methods of breeding, or force them to pay royalties. The patents cover methods of conventional breeding and also the screening for naturally occurring genetic conditions that can make pigs grow faster. (read more)

Uh huh. And I want a patent on breathing through your nose. And snickering, because I know some of you are doing it right now. (I am thinking of a couple of bloggers with "girl" in their names, and maybe a certain Northwet islander) So you out there, snickering at the thought of patenting pig sex, pay up.

And they apparently have no sense of humor either, just ask Tom over at Bitter Greens Journal who has been chatting with their legal department over his use of the phrase, "Roundup, ready." I think he should just call it "Roundup, not ready"  and see what they think. Remember kids, reference and ridicule is the legal grounds for satire--established in the O'Reilly v. Franken case. From what I've read, Tom's readers will help him with the ridicule if he makes the reference.