About 50 campaigners calling for a halt to genetically modified crop trials in a village staged a demonstration on Saturday.

Participants held a vigil alongside a GM maize trial site next to the A420 in Hinton Waldrist before walking to another site 2km away where a series of talks were given.

The protest is the latest move in a campaign carried out by the Hinton and Longworth Against the GM Trials group.

It has held public meetings, organised petitions and a poster campaign calling for the farmer who owns the land to destroy the crops amid safety fears.

Jean Saunders, who helped organise the campaign, said: "The Government will not stop the trials so we want the farmer to destroy the crop. Most local people want the trials stopped and the main concern is that there has been inadequate research in laboratories to ensure that these crops are safe."

**Picture: Antony Moore