malbouffe

The dispute over genetically modified crops goes on! The director I'm working with today on the corporate video project for an unmentionable client is going to France in a couple weeks, so I thought I'd check the French newspapers to see what was going on over there so he could have some talking points. Today's top story from Libération is about José Bové, an independent farmer/activist who has been on a hunger strike for the last week to pressure the government to ban cultivation of genetically modified corn. It is not surprising to me that a group of Frenchies are on strike. It is not so surprising that the French are striking against GM crops. What is surprising to me, as an American living in a country where the majority of our crops are GM and nobody seems to care that much, is that this is the headline story in one of France's top three newspapers. Bravo to the French media for not burying this story, especially when one of France's most valuable assets--its food--is at stake.

By the way, according to AFP, GM crops cover less than one percent of farmland in France, Europe's top agricultural producer.