Honaz, 12 October. Honaz is a small town on the foot of a big mountain, some 15 kilometers outside the city of Denizli, an important centre for agriculture trade and production in South West Turkey. The mountain provides Honaz with something very important: a spectacular spring delivers abundant amounts of water, that are used to irrigate amazingly green fields and orchards full of tomatos, maize, cherries, potatos, olives and many other fruits and vegetables. The nature here is friendly and hospitable. And so are the inhabitants of Honaz. We are welcomed by the mayor of the town in person and invited to drink tea in his office. After the tea the mayor drives us around in his Mercedes to show us Honaz and its surroundings.

We see many fertile fields and also a small, but very modern tomato factory. Via our interpreter the mayor explains that Honaz is a major producer of cherries and tomatos and that  canned tomatos are an important export product, mainly to the former Soviet Republics, that are Turkey's neighbours. Currently export to the EU is still difficult,
due to high taxes, but the mayor hopes that Turkey will become an EU member in the future and that accession to the EU will improve export possibilities. This perspective is not only important for the people of Honaz, but also for millions of other Turkish farmers, a country where the population reaches 70 million and where 40 percent of the labour force works in agriculture.

It is quite obvious that in Honaz nature delivers enough and that there is no need for GMOs. On the contrary: GMOs pose be a serious threat to (potential) export possibilities. We explain to the mayor that 70 % of consumers in the EU does not want to eat GMOs and he seems to confirm our point by smiling and nodding friendly.

Our interpreter explains that many villagers regret that several traditional varieties of tomatos and other vegetables are slowly disappearing from Honaz. The introduction of GMOs would strengthen this tendency and this is another reason that many local people are opposed to GMOs.

Back in the town centre, there is a seminar about GMOs that is attended by more than 100 people, among them not only officials from the municipality and the Ministry of Agriculture, but also many farmers. In the meanwhile the GMO monster tomato is shown in the main square of Honaz, next to the mosque and two huge Turkish flags that have been hung out for this special occasion.