Day 241 - 26 Apr 96 - Page 44
1 impossible to read but I think it is -----
2
3 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What I wrote in the margin: "He said that he
4 did not get any beef from further north because" -----
5
6 MR. MORRIS: -- of the distance. Yes. "He said that his meat
7 only goes to McDonald's in Brazil, he cannot export to UK
8 or Europe because of European Union regulations". Then she
9 goes on to say: "I have not got any information for you
10 yet from other sources - the problem is that everyone's
11 been off work or away since last Friday because of
12 Carnival. From Monday it will be easier - but will that
13 still be of any use? Let me know, regards", her signature:
14
15 The three brief statements of Siegfried Pater, we do not
16 intend to call him so we can read those out.
17
18 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I am going to take him as Civil Evidence Act,
19 am I?
20
21 MR. MORRIS: Yes.
22
23 MR. JUSTICE BELL: He is L5.
24
25 MR. MORRIS: Yes. There are three statements dated 22nd July,
26 27th July and 28th July 1993. I read them in that order.
27 "I declare that I have proof relating to the following
28 facts and I would like to substantiate this in court.
29 - How McDonald's takes part in the destruction of the
30 tropical rainforest in Costa Rica and Brazil;
31 - How McDonald's with its expansion of its chain adds to
32 the hunger in the world;
33 - How McDonald's treats trades unionists in their
34 restaurants, i.e. discriminates or does not tolerate them;
35 - How McDonald's contributes to unhealthy nutrition.
36
37 For these statements I have record, statements of affected
38 people, comprehensive investigations".
39
40 "Declaration", this is the second statement: "I am an
41 expert in the stated problem areas and I would like to make
42 the following statements:
43
44 As author of the book 'McDonald's Beisst Kraftig Zu'
45 (McDonald's Takes a Large Bite) (Lamuv Publications,
46 Gottingen)", that is Gottingen, Germany, "and as producer
47 of the film 'Der Soja-Komplex' (The Soya Bean Complex)
48 (WestGerman Television, Koln), as MSC Engineer and
49 Agriculturist, as an expert on Brazil (two years as
50 Development Assistant and 16 long investigation journeys to
51 Brazil), I came to the conclusion, through observation in
52 Brazil and Germany, to show how the consumption of
53 McDonald's hamburgers destroys the tropical rainforest.
54
55 "In Germany, McDonald's buys beef off farmers, who feed
56 large amounts of soya bean from Brazil. I have traced back
57 the soya bean food to Brazil. Soya bean has been planted
58 on the former virgin forest soil of the Amazonas, but you
59 can find it also in the south of Brazil. To cultivate
60 these large areas of soya, hundreds of thousands of small
