GMW: Secret German GM crop trials revealed/More on Taverne

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GMW:_Secret_German_GM_crop_trials_revealed/More_on_Taverne

" GM_WATCH "

Fri, 7 May 2004 09:26:28 +0100

 

GM WATCH daily

http://www.gmwatch.org

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1.Secret German GM crop trials revealed

2.Organic approach to better food and environment

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Secret German GM crop trials revealed

Half the country is experimenting, says minister

Ben Aris in Berlin

Friday May 7, 2004

The Guardian

http://www.guardian.co.uk/gmdebate/Story/0,2763,1211329,00.html

 

Seven of Germany's 16 states were revealed to be hosting secret trials of

genetically modified crops after environmental activists destroyed a field of

corn in Saxony-Anhalt, in the east of the country.

 

Saxony-Anhalt, which, with Bavaria, is one of two states to admit funding GM

crop trials, said five other states were holding trials in 29 secret locations.

 

Saxony-Anhalt's economics minister, Horst Rehberger, said GM corn, which will be

fed to cattle, was also being cultivated in Baden-W'rttemberg, Brandenburg,

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony and Thuringia.

 

Germany's Green party, which is backing a tough genetic engineering law, said it

was dismayed to discover from the media the extent of GM cultivation. The Greens

are the junior partner in the ruling coalition.

 

" We were surprised not only to discover the number of trial fields but also the

total size more than 300 hectares (750 acres) ... This is not just an

experiment, they are growing the corn for profit, " said a spokesperson.

 

The party says farmers are taking advantage of a loophole in EU regulations that

allows them to grow GM crops for experimental purposes without notifying the

authorities.

 

A tough German genetic engineering law to force farmers to ask permission to

grow GM crops and set up a central register has been hamstrung by regional

opponents in the Bundesrat, the upper house of parliament.

 

The Greens claimed there was an alliance between the biotech industry and

conservative parties, who were trying to profit from the absence of definitive

legislation. Greenpeace has already applied to the European commission for

clarification of the rules, arguing that the location of the experimental fields

cannot be kept secret.

 

Kristof Then, the Greenpeace spokesman for agricultural affairs, said: " The

action of the state representatives in the Bundesrat (to block the genetic

engineering law) is ... against the interests of the country and against the

interests of the people. "

 

In April, the EU introduced a directive requiring all food prepared with GM

ingredients to be labelled. But the rule does not apply to meat and dairy

products from animals fed genetically altered fodder.

 

Germany has no penalties for companies that ignore the directive. Conservatives

also blocked the German agriculture minister's proposal to impose a euro 50,000

(GBP34,000) fine on rule-breakers.

 

Mr Rehberger said Saxony-Anhalt had set aside euro 390,000 (GBP263,000) to fund

the trials, of which euro 240,000 GBP162,000) was being held in reserve to

compensate farmers for any damage the trials caused.

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Organic approach to better food and environment

Friday May 7, 2004

The Guardian

 

Dick Taverne is so reassuringly sensible about the safety of paracetamol, I

almost forgot its sale was restricted in the UK because of the 100- 150 deaths a

year it caused.

 

Nick Coupland

University of Alberta

 

Integrated farm management, the more targeted use of chemicals, which Dick

Taverne praises, probably delivers for wildlife, but the evidence is not, as

yet, very convincing.

 

However, his claim that GM crops allow low-till farming that is " the most

beneficial to birds and wildlife " is deeply misleading. The field-scale trials

clearly demonstrated what a disaster these crops can be for wildlife,

drastically reducing the availability of seeds, an important food source for

birds.

 

Dr Mark Avery

Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

 

Dick Taverne would have us believe organic food is an expensive fad. In reality

GM crops, dependent on highly toxic weedkillers, are much more likely to promote

poverty and hunger.

 

While organic food is increasingly popular in Europe and the US, it can also

benefit people in the developing world. The UN has recently said that organic

farming methods can be a vital tool in promoting sustainable rural development.

 

Dick Taverne should isten to the experiences of real farmers in these places

(see www.farmingsolutions.org).

 

Ben Ayliffe

Greenpeace UK

 

I don't need TV chefs to tell me which foods taste better. My own experience

tells me that certain organic products consistently taste better than their

non-organic equivalents - yoghurt, cream and eggs being three of these. And the

idea of trebling food production to feed the world's starving millions is

ridiculous.

 

Better that the western world reduces its wasteful patterns of food consumption

and we solve the problem of hunger by redistribution.

 

Corin Ashwell

London

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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