“In India we say that taste is everything.
But the taste of the food I ate when I was growing up is not there anymore.
The sanskrit word Rasa has three meanings: “taste”, “emotion” and “essence of life”. When we loose the taste of our food we are loosing our emotions and our spirit at the same time.
I think that the decline in the quality of our lives is strictly interconnected with a decline in the quality of our food. Now I understand that it all comes down to the mutual relationships between seed, soil, food and ourselves.”
“Seed freedom means diversity.
It is Nature’s freedom to express itself however it wants to.
It is important because monocultures are BORING.
Beauty is an abundance of difference.
When life is boring, what’s the point?”
“I believe that seed and food sovereignty are rights of the highest order for all of us, and they should be recognized as flowing from our freedom of religion. If we disconnect from these rights we will have no hope to develop our spirituality as human beings, and we’ll be alienated from creation instead of having the chance to reunite with it.
If we are denied seed and food sovereignty, our freedom as human beings and our privilege to be earthlings are denied too.”
“In Assam farmers used to preserve seeds, but now they are becoming dependent on the market, because they are told that hybrid varieties and chemical fertilizers will increase their production.
As small farmers, we save seeds to preserve our independence.
By being free from chemicals, we are saving our traditional food system, the health of our environment and the health in our own lives.
Chemicals are a threat to life.”
“I feel like a mother who has rights and responsibilities over her own baby.
In the same way a farmer has rights and responsibilities over seeds and their evolution.
I think of seeds as movies, which are the depiction of a society at a certain time. Every seed holds a coded message that depicts a state of evolution.
Seed exchange is like a cultural exchange: it creates stability through diversity.”
“Food freedom means the right to choose your food based on cultural and health needs, without being hindered by political or legal reasons.
It is really a matter of common sense.
Do you have the right to drive a car that has functioning breaks instead of one that has no breaks?
In the same way everyone has the right to consume food that is safe and nutritious, and everyone has the right to have an option.”
“In Tanzania, farmers are increasingly dependent on buying seeds from the market. In most places people have been brainwashed into buying only hybrids.
I want to research on the policies and the existing farmer networks who are engaged in seed saving, know what challenges they are facing and help them to better connect with each other.
Food sovereignty means rejecting monocultures and embracing variety.”
“Food is a basic right to all living beings, just like air and water.
Chemicals-based farming is not only harmful to human beings, it affects the whole system of biodiversity which all forms of life depend on.
We need governments to stop subsidising industrial agriculture so that organic food is not only available to elites who can afford to pay extra money, but to everyone.”
“I’ve been thinking a lot about this quote:
‘Grow where you are planted’.
I think it applies to both food and people.
Nothing should stop you from being able to grow your own food locally.
At the same time, you should always try to put yourself in places and situations that allow you to grow.”
“Food and Seed Sovereignty are of extreme importance to me because I’m the person who takes care of my family, and I have the right to know where my food comes from.
The whole family and community at large depend on the person who cooks food, and everyone has a right to live a happy and healthy life to pass on to the next generation.
A healthy life means a healthy evolution”.
