GM food

national | environment | opinion/analysis Friday October 06, 2006 14:12 by Down with Monsanto

As many of you will probably suspected, you have been consuming Genetically Modified foods for some time now, but do Irish consumers have any idea to what extent this is the case?

Since 1998, Ireland has approved the introduction of unlabelled GM animal feed and food in Europe (indeed, Ireland has NEVER voted against GMOs in the European Parliament ot the Council of Ministers). Therefore, if you are a meat eater, there is a good chance the animals have been fed on GM animal feed. Buying meat from abroad is also no guarantee. For example, Denmark is one of the largest producers of pork and bacon, and the country is also a major purchaser of soya (much of which comes from Argentina, the world's 3rd largest producer of GM soya).

According to the book 'Genetic Engineering, Food and Our Environment' (Luke Anderson, 2000), MOST PROCESSED food in Europe now contains GE ingredients from soya and maize in the form of SOYA OIL, LECITHIN and CORN (MAIZE) SYRUP. So why should you be concerned?
Apart from anything else, GM food is being forced on us despite 70% of EU consumers being against GM, and there have been no long-term studies carried out on the technology. What's more, GM food has been linked to allergic reactions (in 2001, the US public only found out that unlabelled GM food was being sold to them after some people became ill after having allergic reactions to GM maize in crisps). In addition, the technology is unpredictable, unstable and more liable to fail - as with 'FlavrSavr' tomatoes which were withdrawn from the market in the US due to underperformance (soft, easily bruised tomatoes and poor yields). GM crops also reduce biodiversity of wild and agricultural seeds. Perhaps most worrying of all, a single GMO seed shipment can irreversibly contaminate Irish farms within a few years via seed dispersal. If contamination occurs, lawsuits may be brought against farmers (in the US hundreds of such cases have been brought to court) .
USAID, the US International Aid Agency, exerts enormous pressure through the UN World Food Programme (WFP), telling countries they have no choice- accept GM food or get no aid whatsoever. Indeed, in 2004, over 60 groups from 15 African countries wrote to the WFP criticising the way in which hunger is being cynically used to impose GM food on so-called 'Developing Countries'.

If nothing is done, GM seeds will terminate Ireland's reputation as a 'clean green food island'. As a result, all Irish people will lose out in the long-term. Only the biotechnology industry will benefit, their aim of course to profit at our expense by buying up seed companies and ultimately to control the entire food chain. I urge all readers to confront politicians on this issue now that a General Election is forthcoming and try to buy local organic food if possible.