Having harvested disastrous crops of Monsanto’s genetically modified “BT” cotton, many Indian farmers face ruin. The GM cotton, first approved in 2002, was sold at quadruple the price of other varieties – along with the promise of higher crop yields and a reduced need for chemical inputs. Yet the anticipated bumper crop failed to materialize. In fact, the disease and insect-ridden plants forced the farmers to use even more expensive chemicals, driving their bank debts higher and higher. For many farmers, the only escape from these accumulated debts is suicide. In India as a whole, over 2000 farmers have committed suicide in the last few years.

For more than twenty years, Vandana Shiva, author and environmental advocate with a Ph.D. in particle physics, has dedicated herself to defending the rights of India’s small farmers and maintaining biodiversity. “Monsanto – quit India” is the mantra she uses to challenge the agro-chemical multinationals.

(Language Versions: German, English)