Monsanto Exposed and Banned: Country by Country

August 2013.  Update: France

Long Live France?  Not if they are Roundup Ready to Die.

One of France’s top administrative courts recently threw out a ban on GE corn that had been in place since March of last year.  Monsanto now has its foot in the door to introduce GMO seed into France.  The convoluted legal reasoning states that a ban can only be made in case of an emergency or major health risk to people, animals or the environment.  This is the cart of Monsanto $#* put in front of an already healthy horse.  Overall, the French public opinion is anti-GMO but it seems the agricultural sector disagrees.  Monsanto money, political clout and sheer ignorance are responsible for such a careless attitude.  Nothing else makes any sense.

EU countries that have banned cultivation on GMOs include Austria, Luxembourg and Hungary.  In May, Hungary burned 1,200 acres of GMO corn once it was discovered.  They have the right idea. Monsanto in their country?  NO, NO, NEVER!

 

Monsanto Has Been Removed And Banned By: Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, Madeira, New Zealand, Peru, South Australia, Russia, France, and Switzerland!

The Death Empire that is Monsanto Must Fall

MONSANTO:  GUILTY AS CHARGED

2/2013.  Lyon, France.  Paul Francois Sued Monsanto and WON

Paul Francois, a French farmer, sued Monsanto for nerve damage caused by inhaling Lasso weedkiller.  He won.  Monsanto appealed.  Francois won the appeal. 

Francois is now disabled and unable to continue his farming duties because of pesticide poisoning.  He suffered neurological damage due to the Lasso weedkiller formula  which contains alachlor. Lasso’s packaging did not have proper warnings about the dangers of exposure.

Francois sued Monsanto in 2004. He had inhaled Lasso fumes while cleaning his sprayer tank equipment.  Soon thereafter, he developed bouts of memory loss, severe headaches and speech problems.

 

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), exposure to alachlor  can cause damage to the liver, kidneys, spleen, eyes, and could lead to the development of anemia or even cancer.  It can also disrupt hormonal balance, causing numerous reproductive and developmental problems.  France banned the product in 2007 yet, U.S. farmers still use it nationwide each and every day. How many countless tales of suffering and death remain untold and buried?

Paul François was interviewed by Pierre Penin for SudQuest on February 8, 2013:

“Southwest France: Now that you are gravely ill due to the products you used, have you changed your approach?

Paul François : I was part of the world of intensive agriculture. I thought like many that there was no other way. I saw proponents of organic agriculture as attacking me. People who asked for other modes of production, we called hecklers. Here’s a fact: intensive agriculture as was practiced from the 1990s killed the soil. When you do that, you are lost. I’m not talking about converting to organic. But we must join forces to say agronomy must take precedence over chemistry.

Would you talk of political awareness?

My struggle has led me to a new perception. I realized that we were naive. It served us to develop an agriculture that does not like us. We sold it, it suited us. We have to look beyond that sort of communication. We can farm otherwise. Farmers need to understand that those who speak for them are businessmen who defend other interests, very lucrative for the businessmen, who do not care about farmers’ health or the health of those around us.”

Exactly.

Paul Francois founded an association with other victims that would report health problems caused by Monsanto products.  Since 1996, the agricultural branch of the French social security system has gathered about 200 alerts per year regarding sickness related to pesticides. However, only 47 cases were even recognized in the past 10 years.

 

LIES AND MORE LIES

In 2007 , France fined Monsanto for misleading the public about the environmental impact of Roundup when it claimed  their product was “biodegradable” and “left the soil clean.” A former chairman of Monsanto Agriculture France was found guilty of false advertising  and Monsanto's French distributor, Scotts France, was also fined.

Viva la France!!

Source: Okra Paradise Farms blog