DIRK KOK
Saturday’s global protest in 36 countries by activists against the seed giant Monsanto will include demonstrations in Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town and Tzaneen, says the Democratic Left Front in South Africa.
The DLF’s Mazibuko Jara and Andrew Bennie say the DFL will take part in the protests to show their opposition against genetically modified foods and against the control of the food system in order to generate super profits.
Monsanto SA’s Magda tu Toit says genetically modified crops and and Monsanto may be perceived negatively by some groups driven by agendas of their own, but there are many other groups involved in technology, agriculture and science who have quite the opposite sentiments based on experience of the company and its products.
She says among the challenges facing agriculture are the production of food for the growing population and reducing agriculture’s footprint on the environment.
Monsanto believes it is making a contribution to improving agriculture by helping farmers produce more from their land while conserving natural resources such as water and energy, she says.
