Napa Anti-GMO Activists to March Against Monsanto on Saturday

On Saturday, Oct. 12, millions of activists from around the world, including people in Napa County, will once again March Against Monsanto, calling on consumers to boycott genetically engineered (GE) foods and for GE food labeling.

Currently, marches are planned on six continents in 52 countries and over 400 cities. In the US, solidarity marches are slated to occur in 47 states.  A comprehensive list of marches can be accessed at www.march-against-monsanto.com.

The march in Napa will begin at 11 a.m. at Dwight Murray Plaza (the “Old Clock Tower”), 1106 1st St., with speeches by Label GMOs Napa County activist, Carol Nagle; Napa County Green Party Council Member, Steven Stratford; Latinos Unidos President, Hector Olvera; and Napa County Supervisor, Brad Wagenknecht.  

Following the speeches, protesters will march about one mile east and then west on 1st Street, ending at Napa City Hall. 

“We are ending at City Hall, because we have submitted a non-binding resolution to the Napa City Council that we would like them to pass; it calls on the state and federal governments to label GE foods and lays out the reasons why,” says Label GMOs Napa County Coordinator, Amy Martenson. 

“There is ample scientific evidence that GE foods are hazardous to people’s health and to the environment; they should be labeled so that people can easily choose to avoid them,” she said.

Anti-GMO activists have singled out Monsanto Corporation because it produces about 90 percent of GMOs and is also the producer of the most commonly sold herbicide, Roundup, which most GE crops have been engineered to tolerate. 

In addition, Monsanto is the main donor to opposition campaigns fighting GE food labeling initiatives and spent eight million dollars to defeat Proposition 37 here in California during the last election.

Tami Monroe Canal, founder of March Against Monsanto (MAM), was inspired to start the movement to protect her two daughters.

“Monsanto’s predatory business and corporate agricultural practices threatens their generation’s health, fertility and longevity," Canal said. "MAM supports a sustainable food production system. We must act now to stop GMOs and harmful pesticides.”

For more information about the march in Napa, please see the event page on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/425347674239637/.