What price a bunch of grapes?
Alarming news from a village in Bordeaux who are coming to terms with
cancer rates five times the national average. The village in the Sauternes appellation cannot exclude a link with child cancer rates and pesticides sprayed yards from a local school. The former mayor has called for further investigations and legal action. The village, Preignac, lies 25 miles south of Bordeaux. The village and region are said to still be in denial about the risks. The former mayor who works at the renowned CNRS national science research centre alerted authorities to the higher than average cancer rates in December 2012. It advised local authorities to ensure wine growers did not spray at playtime or “at least warn the headmistress” when they were spraying, and told them to “erect protective hedges, aerate classrooms and wash play area equipment”. “There is a law of silence because Sauternes is the lifeblood of the village … If tomorrow we get rid of treatment with pesticides, the local economy of Sauternes wine will collapse.” The current mayor said Sauternes is very important for the region and a bunch of grapes costs very dear...but at the cost of their childrens' health?