Climate protestors throw soup over the Mona Lisa in Paris's Louvre

Protestors ran up to the painting and threw soup over it

Protestors in Paris have thrown soup over the Mona Lisa in the cities Louvre Museum, videos on social media show.

A video shows two protestors throwing what appear to be cans of tomato soup at the painting, before climbing over the barrier in front of it and exposing t-shirts with the organisation 'Riposte Alimentaire' written across them in black lettering.

“What’s the most important thing? Art, or right to healthy and sustainable food?” the protesters shout.

“Our farming system is sick. Our farmers are dying at work,” they added.

French organisation Riposte Alimentaire describe themselves as a collective which seeks to highlight the need to protect sustainable food. Museum staff are later seen rushing in to prop black protective panels around the artwork.

France has faced major protests in the last few days by farmers in a bid to pressure the government to give in to their demands that growing food be made easier and more lucrative.

The movement has spread across the country with protesters using their tractors to shut down long stretches of road and slow traffic on some major routes. The farmers are seeking better remuneration for their produce, less red tape and protection against cheap imports.

In 2022, a man disguised as an elderly woman in a wheelchair threw cake at the famous painting.

The perpetrator, wearing a wig and lipstick, called on people to “think of the Earth” as they were led from the scene.

The painting has been covered by protective glass since 2005.

The Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo da Vinci sometime between 1503 and 1519 and is among the world's best known, and most valuable, paintings.

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