GM protesters bare all

The event was named Bare Witness

A group of villagers have bared all to spell out their opposition to genetically modified crops.

About 30 people stripped off in a field to form the words "no GM".

The naked protest took place on Sunday on the Ashdown Forest in East Sussex with villagers from Forest Row.

Organiser Mike Grenville was behind a similar stunt in January where clothes were shed to spell out the word "peace" in response to the possibility of war with Iraq.

The so called Bare Witness event comes before the government makes its decision about whether GM crops should be allowed to be commercially cultivated.

Mr Grenville said: "I think people were very pleased to have the opportunity to express how we feel, how frustrated we are about what seems to be the forgone conclusion.

Many in the community believe that, once released into the environment, the GM genie cannot be returned to its bottle

Ben Nash, campaigner

"The question many people are saying is 'what do we do next?'

"We hope others will follow our lead and find other ways to express how we feel.

"We do not want GM crops planted in the country at all."

More than 3,000 posters and leaflets were produced to advertise the protest.

Another campaigner Ben Nash, said: "Many in the community believe that, once released into the environment, the GM genie cannot be returned to its bottle."

On Friday, a debate was held in the village about GM crops.

People living in Forest Row are particularly concerned about genetic modification because of the number of organic businesses in the village.

As well as two organic farms, the community supports an organic dairy, an organic kitchen garden, an organic bakery, an organic butcher and an organic grocery.