GMW: Sainsbury's exposed to naked outrage/Call for GM food ban

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GMW: Sainsbury's exposed to naked outrage/Call for GM food ban

" GM WATCH " <info

Wed, 15 Jun 2005 19:37:56 +0100

 

 

 

 

 

GM WATCH daily

http://www.gmwatch.org

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1.Sainsbury's exposed to naked outrage on GM stance

2.Call for genetically modified food ban

3.Expert calls for GM food labelling laws in UAE

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1.Sainsbury's exposed to naked outrage on GM stance

By Julian Goldsmith

Retail week, 15/06/2005

http://www.retail-week.com/nav?page=retailweek.news.detail & resource=2578979

 

Staff at Sainsbury's Holborn HQ in London are being greeted every

morning this week with a series of demonstrations against the retailer

selling milk from cows fed with genetically modified feed.

 

The protests are organised by a variety of pressure groups, including

the Women's Institute and Friends of the Earth. The protests were kicked

off last Sunday with a naked demonstration by eight members of protest

group Bare Witness. It caused such alarm that a police armed response

unit was called out to oversee the demonstration.

 

The groups have singled Sainsbury's out because the retailer pledged to

phase out the use of GM feed by its suppliers five years ago. According

to Friends of the Earth, the retailer has so far failed to do this. It

also criticised Sainsbury's for not letting customers know when meat,

milk and other products from animals fed on GM crops are on sale.

 

Friends of the Earth GM campaigner Clare Oxborrow said: " Customers will

be concerned that Sainsbury's has failed to make good their promise to

get rid of GM animal feed. The big supermarkets must act now to demand

non-GM feed from their suppliers. If they don't, not only will they

continue to deny consumers the right to choose food products from animals

fed a non-GM diet, but they will threaten the availability of GM-free

food ingredients in future. "

 

Although Sainsbury's is the focus of demonstrations this week, the

groups acknowledge that it is not the only grocer to have not made

good on

its promise to cut out GM. However, Sainsbury's is trialling milk from

cows fed on non-GM feed at 190 stores and is soon to decide whether to

extend its trial or discontinue it entirely, according to protest

organiser Milk Monitor.

 

Sainsbury's said its standard milk comes from the same suppliers used

by other UK supermarkets, hotels, schools and hospitals and that

protesters have focused on it because it has always led on GM issues.

 

On its trial of non-GM milk, the retailer said: " Our suppliers are

required to demonstrate the non-GM status of ingredients using

traceability

systems and testing regimes. In addition to this, we carry out our own

testing using independent laboratories. "

 

The demonstrations will go on outside Sainsbury's Holborn HQ for the

rest of the week, ending on Friday morning.

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2.Call for genetically modified food ban

SABC News, June 15, 2005

http://www.sabcnews.com/south_africa/general/0,2172,106620,00.html

 

More than 20 environmental, faith-based and food security groups have

called on government to ban genetically modified (GM) food. The call for

the ban stems from fears that GM maize might be contaminated with Bt 10

-- a variety of maize which contain genes from antibiotics and

ampicillin.

 

Glenn Ashton, spokesperson for the lobby groups, said in a media

statement today: " South Africa has extremely weak biosafe regulations

and no

inspection of grain imports takes place, leading to a significant risk

that our food supply has been similarly contaminated. " The maize is

produce by US company Syngeta Corporation. " Maize contaminated by Bt 10

increases the risk of antibiotic resistance, particularly for vulnerable

populations and those being treated for HIV and Aids, " said Ashton.

 

The European Union had already blocked imports of GM maize unless the

shipment carried proof that the maize was Bt 10 free. Ireland and Japan,

both importers of maize from the US, recently found consignments to be

contaminated with bt 10. Both nations had put testing measures in

place, Ashton said.

 

Grain South Africa estimates that a minimum of 1.981 million tons of

maize was imported by South Africa between 2001 and 2004. " The South

African groups are calling for the South African government to take

immediate steps to test all shipments of GM maize as well as products

on the

South African markets. " As part of the Cartagena protocol on Biosafety,

South Africa must take a zero tolerance stance. " Where contamination is

found, products must immediately be recalled from the market and

Syngeta must compensate for any losses suffered by establishing a fund

for

this purpose, " Ashton said. - Sapa

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3.Expert in call to amend UAE food labelling laws

Khaleej Times , June 15, 2005

By Lina Abdul Rahman

[url AT END]

 

DUBAI — A consumer protection expert has said that the General

Secretariat of UAE Municipalities and the Emirates Authority for

Standardisation and Meteorology (EASM) must amend the existing food

labelling law to

include a law forcing the producers to state whether the products they

offered for sale were genetically modified or not.

 

" A wide selection of genetically modified crops are available in the

markets such as potatoes, tomatoes, corn, rice and some other crops.

People are aggressively buying them without knowing that scientists are

still studying their effects on human health and have not yet proven

whether these cause some harmful effects to their health, " Engineer

Hassan

Al Katheiri, Chairman of Emirates Consumer Protection Society (ECPS),

told Khaleej Times.

 

Eng. Al Katheiri noted that the genetically modified food labelling law

already existed in all European countries, and that Saudi Arabia was

considered to be the only Arab country that has so far been implementing

it. He hoped that the genetically modified food labelling law would be

implemented in the UAE, too, as consumers should be aware whether the

products they purchased were genetically modified or not.

 

" Consumers have full right to know whether the food they consumed is

genetically modified or not. In Britain, for example, restaurants clearly

mention whether they have used any genetically modified product. Being

candid with the consumers is a very strong factor that will increase

their confidence about the safety of what they eat, " he said.

 

Elaborating on the definition of genetically modified plants, he said:

" Genetically modified plants are those that have been genetically

altered to improve resistance to diseases caused by insects or

viruses, and

to increase tolerance to herbicides or extreme weather conditions. The

modification is made to obtain a desired shape or colour of a product

by taking samples from plants or animals. "

 

The majority of consumers are unaware that some of the products that

they buy are genetically modified, and this is attributed to food labels

which lack a number of important details.

 

" As a consumer-protection expert, I think people have the basic right

to know the nature and contents of the product before making a choice

whether or not to purchase it. Consumers should not be deceived by

concealing valuable facts from them, " he said.

 

Eng. Al Katheiri said that so far, there was no significant scientific

evidence that genetically modified crops caused harm to health, but the

absence of correct food labelling on genetically modified food should

not deprive the consumer his right to know that the transplantation of

genes from an animal to a plant and vice versa might have increased the

chances for people to develop allergies, or even worsen the health

conditions of those suffering from allergies.

 

Eng. Al Katheiri noted that some scientists who are opposing the

process of genetically modifying food are concerned about the health

risks

and threats to the environment as there have not been enough number of

studies to prove the safety and that it would not harm living species.

 

Meanwhile, the majority of food producers are supporting the use of

genetically modified food as it increases yields, lowers costs, prevents

dehydration, increases nutrition values and decreases the need for

chemicals. " They are aiming at increasing their profits while overlooking

the safety and the hygiene of their offered food, " said Eng. Al Katheiri.

 

http://www.checkbiotech.org/root/index.cfm?fuseaction=news & doc_id=10562 & start=1 & \

control=226 & page_start=1 & page_nr=101 & pg=1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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