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PRESS RELEASE
Tuesday 7 March
2000
Europe says "Non", "Nein", "No"
to GMO
Pollution
Friends of the Earth launches
major European campaign as
Parliament debates the GMO Release
Directive
As the European Parliament has
its second reading on the GMO
(genetically modified organisms)
release directive, FoE Europe
announced today its European-wide
campaign to halt GMO pollution. The
launch of the new campaign by 23
national FoEE groups [1] coincides
with the publication of a new FoEE
survey of GMO policies of leading
European food manufacturers
[2].
Reacting to requests from FoEE,
the majority of companies stated
that they source ingredients from
GMO-free crops. The survey shows
that most of the top food
manufacturers are aware of
opposition to GMOs throughout
Europe and have been forced to take
action. However, despite this,
European consumers are still eating
food made with GMO crops.
-
Many companies are not
sourcing derivatives [3] such as
oils from GMO-free crops. These
derivatives don't have to be
labelled under the EU’s GMO
labelling regulations.
-
Food companies are still
providing food containing dairy
products or meat from animals fed
on GMO animal feed.
-
Contamination of conventional
food products has become a
serious problem for all
companies. Even where ingredients
and derivatives are sourced from
GMO-free crops, there is a risk
of GMO pollution, either from
cross-pollination in fields or
from contamination at some point
along the food production
chain.
-
Some companies, such as
NestlÈ, have different GMO
policies from country to
country.
While companies including Pepsi
Cola, Coca Cola, Heinz, Mars,
Danone, Campbell, Kellogg’s,
Cadbury/Schweppes and
Kraft/Jacobs/Suchard seem to be
turning their backs on GMO
ingredients, FoE fears that the
consumer’s right to choose GM-free
food will be under threat as long
as European law does not prevent
GMO pollution. This seems to
supported by statements from
companies such as McDonald's Europe
which said "due to concerns
expressed by consumers", it is
aiming
to "use ingredients
from available non-GM sources", or
Unilever which indicated it was
moving to a new system in Europe
where "
hardly
any GMO
ingredients will be used".
"It is completely unclear how
companies wanting to provide
GMO-free food will actually do
that", said Gill Lacroix of FoE
Europe. "Unavoidable cross
pollination from GM- to
non-GM-plants will soon make it
impossible to guarantee GMO-free
food. It is up to the European
Parliament now to insist on very
strict European legislation which
makes sure that our environment and
food is not polluted by GMOs".
In particular, Friends of the
Earth Europe is demanding the
European Parliament ensures that
the new GMO release directive takes
care of citizens’ concerns
throughout Europe by:
-
Preventing GM pollution by
addressing the problem of cross
pollination
-
Banning the use of
antibiotic-resistant marker
genes
-
Adopting strict civil
liability provision covering
damage to environment and human
health.
For more info, contact Gill
Lacroix at FoEE Brussels, T.
542.0182 or mobile 0476-244161.
Further information available at
press conference or via FoE Europe
(phone: 5420180, fax: 5375596):
a) List of the company
statements
b) FoEE's position on the
deliberate release directive
NOTES TO EDITORS (Friends of
the Earth press release, March 7,
2000)
:
[1] FoE member groups from the
following countries are
participating in the campaign:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria,
Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark,
England/Wales and Northern Ireland,
France, Germany, Georgia, Greece,
Italy, Luxembourg, Macedonia,
Malta, Netherlands, Poland,
Scotland, Slovak Republic, Spain,
Sweden, Switzerland and the
Ukraine. The campaign aims to
safeguard for the people of Europe
the right to choose GM-free food,
to grow GM-free crops and to
protect GM-free habitats.
[2] Friends of the Earth
approached the top 26 companies
from "The World's Top 100 Food and
Drink Companies" (compiled by
Seymour Cooke Food Research
International). They were asked
what their policy was on GM
ingredients and derivatives (which
don't contain DNA, such as oils
made from GM crops and lecithin, an
emulsifier made from soya). Four
companies were removed because they
said that either they either didn't
supply food directly to consumers
(they provided ingredients to food
manufacturers) or they didn't
supply to the European market.
[3] Derivatives don't contain
DNA or protein but may have been
manufactured from GMO crops, for
example oils made from GMO crops.
Derivatives which do not contain
DNA or protein don’t have to be
labelled under the EU GMO-labelling
scheme.
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