Canadian farmer brings fight to Cork

CANADIAN farmer Percy Schmeiser brings his international fight against genetic modification to West Cork this week.

Last month, he filed a complaint against the Government of Canada with the UN Commission on Human Rights, alleging violation of consumers’ and farmers’ rights, and attempts to force the use of GM seeds which are modified to be sterile, and to prevent farmers from saving and replanting seeds.

He faced a multi-million dollar patent-infringement lawsuit from Monsanto in 1996, after his crops became contaminated with the company’s GM rapeseed. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that he no longer owned his seeds and crops, because they contained the patented GM genes.

On June 21, at 8pm in the Quality Hotel, Clonakilty, a presentation by Schmeiser should be of interest to anyone who wants to retain the integrity of Irish produced food, say the organisers, from the Skibbereen based Growing Awareness group, which supports food production that respects the earth, farmers and growers.