GM crops -

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Wednesday 22 January 2003 DEVON VOTES TO GO

> GM-FREE

>

> Devon County Council has voted to take steps to

> become GM-free and has called on the Government to

> ban GM crops. The decision has been warmly welcomed

> by Friends of the Earth which launched its GM-free

> Britain Campaign [1] in October last year. Yesterday

> (Tuesday) Devon County Council's Executive Committee

> unanimously agreed to: call on the Government to ban

> the commercial implementation of GM technology until

> scientific evidence has shown there are no harmful

> effects on humans, animals or the environment; raise

> the issue with the South West Assembly with the

> objective of establishing a common South West

> position on the issue; endorse the existing policy

> of the Council's catering service not to supply GM

> food to council establishments (such as schools and

> residential homes); advise council tenants of its

> opposition to GM crops. Under a new European law

> [2], the Government can designate GM crop-free

> areas. Devon is the second largest maize growing

> county. Friends of the Earth's GM campaigner Pete

> Riley said: " This is fantastic news. Congratulations

> to Devon County Council for sticking up for the

> public who have made it perfectly clear that they

> don't want GM food and crops. We hope that more

> local authorities will follow their lead. Devon

> County Council should now ask the Government to

> ensure that GM crops are not grown anywhere in the

> county in future - something it is able to do under

> a new European law. " Friends of the Earth launched

> its GM-free Britain campaign in October 2002 to

> persuade local authorities to take steps to become

> GM-free areas. Later this year the Government is

> expected to decide whether or not to allow GM crops

> to be commercially grown across the UK. If it does

> Friends of the Earth warns that it would lead to

> widespread GM contamination of our food, crops and

> environment, and would remove people's right to

> choose food free from GM content. GM food and crops

> are deeply unpopular. An NOP survey published in

> October showed that 57 per cent do not want GM crops

> to be commercially grown across the UK. Friends of

> the Earth's GM campaigner Pete Riley said: " The G

> overnment will soon decide whether to allow GM crops

> to be commercially grown in the UK. If it allows

> this to happen it will lead to the widespread GM

> contamination of crops, food and the environment.

> People must make it clear that they don't want this

> to happen. And they can do this by urging their

> local authority to go GM-free. It really is now or

> never. " Notes 1. For more information on Friends of

> the Earth's GM-Free Britain Campaign see:

> www.gmfreebritain.com

>

> The press release launching the campaign can be

> found at:

>

http://www.foe.co.uk/pubsinfo/infoteam/pressrel/2002/200210220

> 00146.html 2. Article 19 of EU GMO Directive

> (2001/18) which came into force in October 2002

>

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