Food, Farms, and Solidarity

The Confederation Paysanne, one of France's largest farmer's unions, has successfully fought against genetically modified organisms (GMOs); but unlike other allied movements, theirs has been led by producers rather than consumers. In Food, Farms, and Solidarity, Chaia Heller analyzes the group's com [...]
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The Confederation Paysanne, one of France's largest farmer's unions, has successfully fought against genetically modified organisms (GMOs); but unlike other allied movements, theirs has been led by producers rather than consumers. In Food, Farms, and Solidarity, Chaia Heller analyzes the group's complex strategies and campaigns, including a call for a Europe-wide ban on GM crops and hormone-treated beef, and a protest staged at a McDonald's. Her study of the Confederation Paysanne shows the challenges small farms face in a post-industrial agricultural world. Heller also reveals how the language the union uses to argue against GMOs goes beyond the risks they pose; emphasizing solidarity has allowed farmers to focus on food as a cultural practice and align themselves with other workers. Heller's examination of the Confederation Paysanne's commitment to a vision of alter-globalization, the idea of substantive alternatives to neoliberal globalization, demonstrates how ecological and social justice can be restored in the world.