Gene crops will be forced on UK
10 May 1999
‘Gene crops will be forced on UK’
By FWi staff
GENETICALLY modified crops will enter the country through the back door – even if British farmers are banned from growing them, claims a report published today.
Aggressive marketing techniques used by biotechnology companies will drive other foods off supermarket shelves, says the report by the charity Christian Aid.
“GM crops currently not grown commercially in the UK are being promoted in developing countries,” says the report, which is called Selling Suicide.
“More land is projected to be planted with GM crops in the South than the North, while the crops are still banned in the UK for precaution.”
Christian Aid believes the recent international trade dispute over bananas could be a prelude to forcing GM crops on developing countries.
Disagreements could see international trade rules used to force poorer countries to accept GM crops and food which could then be imported to the UK.
Plans to expand the planting of GM soya in Brazil threatens one of the last major sources of the non-modified plant for the UK, the report says.
“Consumers could be left with no choice but to have GM soya,” it adds.
The report also criticises attempts by biotechnology companies to develop terminator technology, a technique which would make plants infertile.
British farmers growing GM terminator varieties would find it impossible to use farm-saved seed because the plants reproductive capability would be inhibited.
That could effectively turn farmers into labourers, rather than entrepreneurs with control over their businesses, the report says.
“A farmer will, in effect, be only a hired planter of seed,” it adds. “Even if owning their own land, she or he will be told when and how to grow the crop.”
The report forecasts that genetic engineering in farming is likely to strip farmers of their skills, independence and ability to innovate new crops.
It warns that flawed approaches to farming could take root because of the marketing and lobbying strength of the companies behind GM crops.
“Contracts between the seed company and farmer which prevent the saving of seed will become increasingly common,” it says.
- The Times 10/05/02/99 page 6 (News in Brief)
- Financial Times 10/05/99 page 7
- The Guardian 10/05/99 page 13, page 21
- The Herald 10/05/99 page 7
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