This article is another of Stephan Neidenbach’s attempts to misconstrue facts regarding anti-GMO groups. The base claim of this article is that the French anti-GMO group, Les Faucheurs Volontaires, is so violent and intimidating that they are singularly responsible for a French farmer’s suicide. This is completely false.
The farmer in question is Claude Lagorse, who was a trusted member of an eco-friendly, staunchly anti-GM cooperative. He secretly planted Bt corn without informing his cooperative, his farming neighbors, or his own wife. The concerns of Bt corn in the farming communities of France and elsewhere are very serious when considering the dangers of pollen drift and rising resistance to Bt crops in pests. Bt corn is also linked to the decimation of monarch butterflies and bees. In another words, Claude Lagorse violated the trust of his community when he failed to inform them of introducing a crop that most certainly could affect their own farms and integrity of the cooperative. Les Faucheurs Volontaires had planned the picnic debate event for the month of August to raise awareness of the issue of the moratorium on GMOs. At no time was Claude Lagorse a target of intimidation or violence, as this author would have you believe. Like many of the thousands of farmers who commit suicide every year, his suicide is certainly very sad and regrettable and, unfortunately, all too common. Committing to buy from small and local mom and pop farms is the best way to help stop this escalating tragedy. To learn more on helping our farmers, please visit:
https://www.farmaid.org/press-release/farm-aid-statement-cdc-retracton-farmer-suicide-statistics/