Subject: Protesters Destroy Genetically Modified  Field 
 
 Thursday April 13 11:12 AM ET

 Protesters Destroy Genetically Modified
 Field

 TOULOUSE, France (Reuters) - Several hundred environmental
 campaigners destroyed a field of genetically modified (GM)
 rapeseed in France Thursday as part of a public awareness
 campaign, the Green Party said.

 Around 400 protesters, including Green Party activists, took part in
 the demonstration in a field in the Ariege region.

 "In front of around 10
 gendarmes who remained at
 a distance, we symbolically
 reaped this field of about
 one hectare using traditional
 tools," Jean-Luc
 Bennhamias, national
 secretary of the Green Party, told Reuters.

 Several ecological activists were placed under investigation a few
 months ago after staging a similar protest, as public concern about
 GMOs increased in the aftermath of a series of food crises from
 mad cow disease to dioxin.

 Earlier this month, an experiment in Ariege to see whether pollen
 from GM rapeseed can contaminate nearby plants was sabotaged for
 the second time in less than a year.