Alongside marches and teach-ins, food activists have been serving free food in Quebec City. In addition to feeding the hungry masses pouring into Quebec, the action carries a powerful political message - food is a fundamental right.

“Because Food is a Fundamental Right…”
by meera karunananthan

That is what has made food such a passionate issue in the fight against the Free Trade Area of the Americas. In addition to environmentalists and political activists, farmers from across the Americas have gathered in Quebec City to fight against the impacts of liberalisation on agricultural sovereignty and the quality of food. The presence of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in grocery stores, contamination of crops by pollen from neighbouring GMO crops, and the right to land and subsistence are among their concerns.

Canada is the second largest GMO producing country in the world . “One of the most profitable crops for Canadian prairie farmers was destroyed by the GMO industry,” said Sharon of the National Farmers Union, referring to the canola crop. She and other speakers, including French activist José Bové, were gathered at a picnic held in front of the Ministry of Agriculture building by a collective of activists called the “Belly of Resistance.” Organic vegetarian sandwiches, cookies and bread were handed out to a lively crowd of protesters in colourful costumes, who were playing drums and singing songs as speeches were made in English, French, Spanish and Portugese.

Distributing free food has served both a political purpose and the practical purpose of feeding thousands of protestors gathered in Quebec City for the week. In the space underneath the Montmorency highway, a group of Winnipeg activists in conjunction with Food not Bombs has set up a kitchen serving free vegan food to hungry masses pouring into the city since Monday. According to Gurley, one of the organizers, the number of people served has increased from 500 people on Monday to at least a 1500 on Thursday. “This is one of the most useful activities taking place this week,” she said. “Many people need access to free food.”

Bové said that food politics are a fundamental aspect of the struggle against free trade. “The fight against GMOs has exposed the rationale of multinational corporations: to sacrifice the well being of the planet in the interest of a few individuals” he said. Bové called for direct action against the laboratories producing GMOs and the firms that sell them, urging Canadians to follow the lead of French activists who broke into Novartis and destroyed genetically modified corn crops. As a result of such public resistance, there are no GMOs in France.

“We must get rid of the entire logic of patenting,” Bové said. “And we cannot stop until this has been achieved.”

In the meantime, protestors who have gathered here from North, South and Central America to fight for their rights will not go hungry.