GM soy in Brazil: limits to the technological dissemination process

the emergence of gm soy has been at the core of an intense debate, revolving around the advantages and disadvantages of its adoption as well as the behaviour of those institutions involved in the regulatory framework of such a phenomenon. this paper aims at assessing the dissemination of genetically modified soy in brazilian agriculture in the period between 1998 and 2005, from the standpoint of the institutional framework related to gmo technology. thus, attention is given to the strategy adopted by the monsanto company in the light of the difficulties emerging throughout the process that led to the authorization to the production and marketing of soybean in brazil. the main actors in this process are identified as also the institutional framework involved in the marketing relations between innovator and users.