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The customer is always right (January 22, 2001 – Cropchoice news) – Since last Thursday, a number of farmers have used a Progressive Farmer.com forum to question the wisdom of planting genetically engineered crops in the face of consumer rejection.
One farmer, who identified himself as Big John, kicked off the forum by pointing out that the customer is always right. European and Japanese consumers do not want genetically modified foods and have said so. Their governments have responded by tightening regulations on such foods. Big John wrote that selling this stuff to them is setting up farmers for "financial suicide."
"In any business if you want to be successful you find out what product that the market wants and you provide it to them," Big John wrote. "If the market doesn't want GM crops or meat that has been treated with hormones don't try to shove it down their throats, give the markets what they want. After all they are the customer and the customer is always right."
Segregation is a major issue facing farmers. Big John lamented that farmers are the folks facing lawsuits because transgenic pollen drifted onto their fields. He hinted that cross-pollination and the mixing of genetically modified and conventional grains at elevators will continue to hurt farmers.
"If America's farmers don't wake up and learn this lesson I can guarantee that farmers from other countries will fill the markets that we leave open by our own pigheadedness."
Source: Progressive Farmer
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