Day 284 - 22 Oct 96 - Page 25


     
     1        down, however they are cut down.  And although it is our
     2        case that the enormous destruction of tropical forests has
     3        been caused by the global demand, especially in the USA for
     4        hamburgers in particular, of which McDonald's is the number
     5        one culprit for creating such a demand and promoting and
     6        satisfying a demand, that it is also damaging that
     7        McDonald's are using the beef within countries with
     8        rainforests in their local stores.
     9
    10        So the sting of this section is not whether or not who
    11        exported to whom and when, although that is part of it; it
    12        is also the local usage as well even though McDonald's are
    13        responsible for exports of beef to the USA and elsewhere,
    14        because whether or not they themselves directly use that
    15        beef, which it is our case that they do, as a statistical
    16        inevitability and other evidence, but whether or not that
    17        he do is immaterial, whether they use it directly, because
    18        they are stimulating that demand which has to be satisfied
    19        one way or another.
    20
    21        Just to emphasise, it is clear to us in that sentence that
    22        the burgers relate to McDonald's - this is the McDonald's
    23        and Burger King sentence - that they create grazing
    24        pastures for cattle to be sent back to the States as
    25        burgers, is what relates to McDonald's.  And then it says
    26        and pet food and to provide fast food packaging materials,
    27        and that section would relate to the other of the many US
    28        corporations referred to.
    29
    30   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  But does not fast food packaging refer to
    31        McDonald's as well?
    32
    33   MR. MORRIS:   Not in terms of the Central American connection,
    34        no.
    35
    36   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Why do you say that?   I am not looking at
    37        the facts now and what the evidence is, but what the
    38        meaning of the leaflet is.  I can take your point about
    39        since it mentions many corporations and the reader might
    40        not associate pet food with McDonald's; then I can see that
    41        your argument that pet food would not be taken to refer to
    42        McDonald's.  Whether it is right or not, I am not giving
    43        any indication of.
    44
    45        But just as I would have thought the reader would associate
    46        burgers with McDonald's, among others, as you accept,
    47        I would have thought the reader would associate fast food
    48        packaging materials with McDonald's, among others.
    49
    50   MR. MORRIS:   Well, we do not think that that necessarily 
    51        follows, because obviously the reference to pet food means 
    52        that we are talking about the general usage of Central 
    53        American resources as exports by many US corporations.  And
    54        the fact that McDonald's might use fast food packaging
    55        materials does not mean to say that they are using those
    56        from Central America, whereas the claim about the cattle is
    57        absolutely clear, create grazing pastures for cattle.
    58
    59   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  Well, there we are.
    60

Prev Next Index