"THE STROUD CAMPAIGN FOR SAFE FOOD"

The following letter from Henry & Sally Brighouse, Natural Law Party representatives in Stroud, tells the story of the rising waves of support to make Stroud the first GMO-free city in the UK:

"When 500 people turned out to deliver a carefully worded document of concern about genetically modified organisms to Stroud's five supermarkets recently, it was clear that a deep concern felt by the people of Stroud was coming into focus.

The event was a milestone in a process of education that started three years earlier with the arrival in Stroud of the Natural Law Party's clear and persuasive leaflet outlining the dangers of GM food. We handed it out wherever we could, and took a copy to our then MP who blandly assured us there was nothing to worry about because government regulatory procedures were quite adequate to protect the consumer.

In response, we sent a rather indignant open letter that was published in the local paper, urging people to write to their MP and to supermarkets expressing their concerns about GM food.

Local food shop owners Lyn and Trevor Searby became interested, as did Green Party town councillor John Marjoram, who is now Mayor of Stroud. (The Greens had no policy on GMOs at this point.) Together we decided to hold a special town meeting.

The poster to announce the meeting showed a big red tomato with a fizzing bomb fuse. 'Danger! GM food may not be what it seems,' read the caption. 50 people came to the meeting and from it emerged the 'Stroud campaign for safe food'.

The Natural Law Party had established its identity as the party with a clear understanding of the issue, and the NLP's leaflet about GMOs became increasingly in demand in local shops and cafés.

The 1997 general election gave us a new MP, David Drew (Labour), who was more receptive to our concerns and wisely realised that the GMO issue was a serious vote-catcher, in spite of government pro-GM policy. We had gained a voice in parliament.

The focus of the campaign was to keep writing letters by the dozen, inspired by our large ongoing exhibition in the Mother Nature food shop in the centre of town.

Food is an emotive issue, and early in the campaign our meetings could be emotionally charged, as the magnitude of the problem became apparent. Then, we began to integrate the knowledge of Maharishi's Vedic Science into our meetings to bring a broader perspective to the issue with an understanding more and more in terms of principles of consciousness, where problems turn into solutions. Instead of 'fighting the darkness' and getting tired, bringing the light of deeper knowledge has proved to be a more fulfilling and sustainable approach.

It was the Mayor, with his finger on the pulse of collective consciousness, who proposed a march. We met to give the idea definite shape and purpose, arriving at 'The Stroud Document on GMOs' and the plan to present it formally to the town's supermarkets during the march. The document clearly outlines the risks and disadvantages of GMOs and recommends a boycott of all processed foods, since so many of them - up to 80% - may contain GMOs. 'This means a healthy return to home cooking, using basic ingredients, until processed foods can be guaranteed to be derived from non-GM, identity-preserved sources,' proclaims the document.

A date was fixed just two weeks away on 6th Marchand the route agreed with the police. Flyers and posters went up around the town and the local paper published the 1,000-word document in full, three days before the march. 25 local organisations agreed to write statements of support for the document.

Although snow was forecast, we awoke to a fine sunny morning. Gathering at the top of the High Street, the crowd began to swell. A young Meditator, Holly Burt, arrived with her school friends and volunteered to carry the eight-foot wide campaign banner, heading the march for its two-hour duration. We were amazed to find that over 500 people had joined the march carrying many banners, while a band of drummers arrived to send us of.

The orderly procession culminated in the town square where the Natural Law Party was invited to read out the Stroud Document on GMOs, after which the MP David Drew replied, and the Marchioness of Worcester spoke on behalf of the Green Party and presented the Iceland store manager with a bouquet of flowers in recognition of the company's pioneering stand in excluding GMOs from its products. A poem was read out, followed by closing remarks and congratulations from the Mayor.

There was a sense of collective achievement, much applause and very full media coverage over the following days. Our local newspaper's letters' column continues to bulge with letters on the topic, whilst vendors of organic produce are dramatically increasing their turnover.

Events are showing that collective consciousness is changing very fast. There is no doubt that people are beginning to realise very clearly that the process of genetic engineering - manipulating the complex mechanisms of DNA and the subsequent disruption of the sequence of intelligence that structures life - is a violation of Natural Law. Now, Natural Law is rising to put things right.

Our campaign to ban GMOs continues with rising support to make Stroud the first GM-free town in the country."

(Reprinted from TM News, April 1999)