Seed Today - Q3 2008 - (Page 73)

When is Enough GM Testing Enough? Western Australia’s Premier seeks “absolute crystal clear knowledge” Western Australia’s Premier Alan Carpenter in early June says all genetically modified foods should be taken off the shelf until they are proven safe by independent scientists. He called for the Federal Government to introduce national guidelines for GM foods and to improve labelling and regulating laws so consumers could be better informed. Carpenter says while he has no intention of lifting Western Australia’s moratorium on GM foods, it is up to the national food regulator Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) to introduce independent scientific trials to determine GM foods’ long-term safety. Premier Carpenter is apparently not satisfied with the results of hundreds of food safety tests conducted on GM products around the world. “There are still unresolved issues and questions about the effect of GM foods on human beings and we believe in the absence of absolute crystal clear knowledge and unequivocal reassurance to the consumer that GM foods are not potentially dangerous or harmful, GM foods should be labelled,” he says. have DNA or protein they don’t need to be labelled [is not acceptable because] there is a small amount of DNA in these oils. “Regardless, consumers have repeatedly said they want choice in what they eat and at the moment the labelling doesn’t give them the choice. “There are no policing of the labelling laws so it’s a bit like telling everyone they need to stick to a 60 km per hour speed limit on the roads and then removing all the police on the roads and hopefully people will stick to the speed limit,” Dr. Carman says. A Pastoralists and Graziers Association spokesman says the state’s stance against GM crops is at odds with the farmers’ need to be able to access the best production techniques at a time when there is a global food shortage. “It’s an incredible mess,” he says. Lack of Label Policing Director of the Adelaide institute of Health and Environment Research, Dr. Judy Carman, is running an independent study on safety in GM foods. She says all GM foods need to be independently tested and it is not acceptable that oils from GM crops such as cotton seeds and canola do not need to be labelled because they contain little DNA. “The idea that because these oils don’t Response No. 731 Response No. 732 Third Quarter 2008 73 http://www.ilcrop.com http://www.walinga.com http://www.walinga.com http://www.ilcrop.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Seed Today - Q3 2008

Seed Today - Q3 2008 Contents Editor’s Notes Cover Feature Fred Miller, Ph.D., MMR Genetics Crosbyton Seed Company AOSCA Greg Lowry Floyd Hansmeirer AOSA/SCST According to ASTA Seedsellers, Inc. BinMaster Blake Sieker Ad Index

Seed Today - Q3 2008

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