Shareholder_Risk_Of_Genetically_Engineered_Crops

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GMW:_Shareholder_Risk_Of_Genetically_Engineered_Crops

> " GM_WATCH " <info

> Sat, 21 Aug 2004 22:49:08 +0100

 

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> Food Companies Fail To Disclose Shareholder Risk Of

> Genetically Engineered Crops:

> Despite Requirements, Most Companies Not Following

> Letter or Spirit of The Law

> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

> AUGUST 19, 2004

> CONTACT: U.S. PIRG

> Liz Hitchcock or Richard Caplan 202-546-9707

> http://www.commondreams.org/news2004/0819-03.htm

>

> WASHINGTON - August 19 - Ninety-five percent of the

> top food companies in the United States fail to

> properly inform shareholders about the risks posed

> by genetically engineered (GE) ingredients,

> according to Duty to Disclose: The Failure of Food

> Companies to Disclose Risks of Genetically

> Engineered Crops to Shareholders, a new report

> released today by the U.S. Public Interest Research

> Group (U.S. PIRG).

>

> While one mistake involving genetically engineered

> crops is estimated to have already cost the food

> industry over one billion dollars, and more

> shareholder resolutions have been filed regarding GE

> issues than any issue since apartheid-era South

> Africa, only two of the top 35 publicly traded food

> companies mention GE ingredients in their Annual

> Reports as required, according to Duty to Disclose.

>

> " Shareholders need to know about the products their

> company makes, " said U.S. PIRG Safe Food Advocate

> Richard Caplan. " By not disclosing the many risks

> posed by genetically engineered crops, food

> companies are failing to meet their legal duty to be

> fully honest with shareholders. "

>

> " Duty to Disclose " describes the risks posed to food

> companies from genetically engineered ingredients,

> including product liability lawsuits, loss of

> insurance coverage, damage to reputation, consumer

> rejection, international renunciation, cross

> contamination, and economic loss due to sudden

> regulatory changes. While federal regulations

> require that investors receive full disclosure of

> any material facts about the companies in which they

> own shares, only Kraft Foods Inc. (KFT-NYSE) and

> Interstate Bakeries (IBC-NYSE), makers of Hostess

> Cupcakes and Wonderbread, disclosed to shareholders

> that genetically engineered ingredients might pose a

> material risk to shareholders.

>

> " Just as crops require sunlight to grow, investors

> need the 'sunlight' provided by full disclosure of

> material risks in order to grow their portfolios, "

> said Michael Leone of Green Century Capital

> Management, a mutual fund company. " The risks of

> genetically engineered foods should be disclosed so

> that investors can make informed decisions, " he

> concluded.

>

> Industry estimates maintain that 60 to 70 percent of

> all processed foods on American grocery store

> shelves contain GE ingredients. Human safety testing

> by the Food and Drug Administration is not

> mandatory, nor are companies required to label GE

> products. A recent poll by the Food Policy Institute

> found that 78 percent of respondents thought it

> " very important " that the food they purchase does

> not contain GE ingredients, and 94 percent believe

> that GE foods should be labeled as such.

>

> Duty to Disclose makes several recommendations,

> including a call for food companies to remove the

> financial risks associated with genetically

> engineered ingredients by removing genetically

> engineered ingredients from their products.

>

> " The risks from genetically engineered food aren't

> only to the environment or human health, but are

> financial as well, " concluded Caplan. " Food

> companies should stop hiding the truth from

> shareholders, and let them know the risks they face

> from genetically engineered crops. "

>