19 Facts About Percy Schmeiser

Percy Schmeiser was a Canadian businessman, farmer, and politician.

Percy Schmeiser renamed the farm equipment dealership Schmeiser's Garage and added a second farm equipment dealership in Humboldt, Saskatchewan in 1986 and oversaw their operations until their sale in 2003.

Percy Schmeiser became an international symbol and spokesperson for independent farmers' rights and the regulation of transgenic crops during his protracted legal battle with multinational agrichemical company Monsanto.

Percy Schmeiser is the subject of the 2009 film David Versus Monsanto and the 2020 film Percy.

In 1997, Schmeiser found volunteer canola plants and a number of weeds growing along the road in one of his fields.

Percy Schmeiser surprisingly found that a number of these volunteer canola plants had survived after the spring burn, potentially meaning they had developed a resistance to chemicals.

Percy Schmeiser testified that his intention all along was to plant canola in that field as it was fallow, as it was part of his crop rotation to prevent disease.

Percy Schmeiser refused, stating that there was no intent to use Monsanto's product, that he didn't spray his fields with Roundup and claimed that the actual seed was his because it was grown on his land.

Meanwhile, Percy Schmeiser became a popular figure among those opposed to genetic engineering.

Percy Schmeiser continued to face threats and harassment from Robertson Investigations; a firm hired by Monsanto to enforce their patent.

Percy Schmeiser again discovered Roundup Ready Canola growing in his fields in 2005, even though canola had not been planted in that particular field since 1998.

Percy Schmeiser contacted Monsanto to have the company remove it, but when Monsanto conditioned doing so on Schmeiser signing a confidentiality agreement and a release from litigation, Schmeiser had the cleanup done and billed Monsanto for the $660 cost.

When Monsanto refused to pay, Percy Schmeiser sued in small claims court.

Percy Schmeiser spent over 40 years in various political roles and community service.

Percy Schmeiser served as mayor of Bruno from 1966 to 1983, and as member of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan for the Watrous constituency for the Liberal Party of Saskatchewan from 1967 to 1971.

Percy Schmeiser was elected again as a town Councillor of Bruno in 2003 and served as the deputy mayor until 2009.

Percy Schmeiser was the recipient of the Merit Award for Dealer of the Year in 1984 by the Saskatchewan Manitoba Implement Dealers Association.

Percy Schmeiser was appointed to Saskatchewan's Real Estate Commission in 1993 and served until 1999.

Percy Schmeiser died on October 13,2020, at the age of 89 from Parkinson's disease.