Picnics are not normally matters of life or death. But last month, one French farmer chose to take his own life rather than witness anti-GM campaigners 'picnicking' among his transgenic corn. At 8:30 a.m. on Sunday August 5, after telephoning the local police in Saint-Céré, Claude Lagorse placed at his feet a corn seedling and a leaflet announcing the anti-GM 'picnic/debate' planned for later that day and then hung himself under a tree.

Lagorse's social standing and his own attitude to GM crops probably contributed to the complex interplay of tensions that led to his suicide. A father of four and a respected member of the local community in Girac in the Dordogne, he and his brother were members of a local eco-friendly farming cooperative, raising pigs and cultivating ∼3.5 hectares of corn as feed.

We don't know why Lagorse chose to plant GM Bacillus thuringiensis toxin (Bt) corn (MON 810) but it was clearly not just adventitious happenstance. He had notified all the relevant government authorities. However, only his brother knew about the Bt corn. He had not told his neighbors. He had not even told his wife.

Why not? In the context of prevailing, ill-informed perceptions of GM crops in Europe, perhaps he feared his decision might poison relations with neighbors or damage his eco-friendly credentials. Even if Largorse recognized that the avoidance of chemical insecticides can make Bt corn more eco-friendly, would he have been able to convince surrounding farmers, especially those with entrenched anti-GM views?

At least part of the blame for Lagorse's secrecy, and his anguish on being discovered, can be placed at the door of the French system. In direct contradiction to Article 9 of European Directive 2001/18-CE, the French government still releases only the number and aggregate hectares of GM crop plots rather than their precise locations. In contrast, other national authorities provide very specific, identifying information. The UK authorities, for instance, publish a map reference that narrows the location to an area approximately one square kilometer. Obfuscation by the Gallic authorities has not prevented crop destruction, however: in the past three years, anti-GM groups' vandalization has affected half of all French field trials.

There is a clear solution. Those who embrace GM crops must do it openly, as democratic society demands. Otherwise, activists will exploit secrecy to foment public mistrust, portraying themselves as heroes exposing covert GM planting operations. French regulators, industry and farmers must become explicit and precise about the location of GM trials, even if that makes abuse of the system easier for activists in the short term. Ultimately, transparency and openness will make the continued destruction of property and intimidation of farmers difficult to justify. And most importantly, it could prevent a repeat of the recent tragedy.