GM foods on the Internet I

Citation

Fallows, S. (1999), "GM foods on the Internet I", British Food Journal, Vol. 101 No. 8. https://doi.org/10.1108/bfj.1999.070101hab.001

GM foods on the Internet I

GM foods on the Internet I

Introduction

The most significant UK food news theme for the early part of 1999 has been the issue of genetically modified (GM) foods and food ingredients. The matter has been given a significant degree of hyperbole across the range of news media. News stories have covered all aspects from the validity of scientific evidence through to the possibility of inappropriate Ministerial actions.

The author recognises that this issue is still developing and new perspectives will continue to emerge. Readers should note that this article is written in March 1999 and hence this excludes from consideration any subsequent events and/or Web site postings.

Genetic modification of foods has stimulated action on a wide range of Web sites. Some sites are dedicated to this issue whilst for others GM foods is one of a wider range of matters. The Web sites range from the highly scientific and which present material that has been subject to academic peer review through to those that merely offer the unsubstantiated views of individuals.

Since it is recognised that the GM foods issue is controversial, it is worthwhile to briefly review the status of GM foods with respect to the UK food market.

At the time of writing, only the following have approval in the UK:

• •

  A single variant of GM soya.

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  A single variant of GM maize.

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  A single GM tomato for which approval (so far) is only for use in tomato puree.

In addition to the above, GM ingredients permit (for example) the production of "vegetarian" cheese in which a GM enzyme is used to replace the traditional milk clotting agent rennet which is extracted from the stomachs of slaughtered calves.

At the time of writing, the UK public concern revolves, particularly, around the first two of the above list. Each commodity is used widely within the manufactured foods sector and each, as a bulk commodity, suffers from the USA's decision to accept these variants without any need to separate GM from non-GM sources. Since the bulk supply is mixed, and soya and maize are almost universal ingredients in modern processed foods, it has become very difficult to avoid consumption of GM-derived ingredients.

In order to allow a range of viewpoints to be included this review of Web sites relating to GM foods will be split into two parts:

1. 1.

   Reviews in this article will focus on sites that take a broadly "anti-GM" position.

2. 2.

   Reviews in the next article in this series will focus on sites which are essentially "pro-GM" or at least officially neutral with respect to GM foods.

As a general rule, the first group is consumer oriented whilst the second group is producer/industry oriented; however, each group contains surprises. Government Web sites have been placed in the second category since they present a generally neutral position in which acceptance or rejection of GM foods is based upon recommendations from scientific advisers.

In preparing these reviews, the author has taken care to adopt the neutral position. Sites are reviewed on the basis of the type of material provided. Readers are invited to make their own judgements and it is hoped that the Web sites reviewed here, together with those to which they link, will contribute to this judgement.

Web site reviews - the "anti GM" group

Pusztai Report

The GM issue emerged as a news story in February 1999 when an international group of scientists published a statement that supported the views of the Rowett Research Institute scientist Dr Arpad Pusztai. In late October 1998, Dr Pusztai produced a report that suggested that rats fed on a particular GM potato suffered damage to the brain, immune system and other organs. Dr Pusztai discussed his findings in a World in Action documentary and was suspended from his post; he has now retired after being exonerated in a misconduct inquiry.

Dr Pusztai's report is now available on the Internet at the following URL: http://www.rri.sari.ac.uk/gmo/index.html However, it must be noted that (contrary to many media reports):

• •

  no approvals have been given for the commercial production or sale of GM potatoes in the UK;

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  results such as those reported from Dr Pusztai's research would be more than sufficient to prevent the sale of the particular GM product; and

• •

  if a health hazard is identified with respect to one GM food it should not be assumed that all GM products will carry the same hazard. Similarly, if one or two GM foods are declared to be safe, it is not possible to assume that this would also apply to all other GM foods - this is why all GM foods are subject to an individual approval process under the EU's 1997 Novel Foods Directive.

The Prince of Wales

Prince Charles is a well-known supporter of organic food production and it is not surprising therefore that he challenges the introduction of GM foods.

The Prince's Internet site includes a statement of his personal views on GM foods. It also hosts a discussion forum in which there is opportunity to contribute views on the GM issue. The Prince published an article on GM crops in the Daily Telegraph of 8 June 1998. The URL for the Prince's Website is http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/forum The URL for the Prince's Daily Telegraph article is http:/www/princeofwales.gov.uk/speeches/agriculture_08061998.html

Friends of the Earth

Friends of the Earth (FOE) is a well established and respected group which campaigns on a range of environmental issues. GM foods are a current campaign issue for FOE.

The Web site considers the question "What's wrong with genetic engineering?" and discusses this from a range of perspectives including:

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  Health concerns.

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  Environmental concerns.

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  The role of chemical farming (noting the involvement in GM of the pesticide manufacturers supporting (for instance) the development of GM-crops able to resist named herbicides).

The site lists the FOE Campaign Aims with respect to GM foods. These include:

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  Moratorium on commercial planting of GM plants in the UK and on imports of GM foods.

• •

  Tighter controls on the release of GM organisms.

• •

  Greater public consultation.

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  Segregation of GM crops.

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  Global ban on technology which prevents seeds germinating.

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  Reform of the UK government's advisory committees concerned with GM foods.

The site also lists what FOE considers to be "successes" in this area. FOE is a campaigning organisation; the site, therefore, includes details on how to become involved in its activities. The URL is http://foe.co.uk/camps/foodbio/index.htm

Greenpeace

As with Friends of the Earth (above) Greenpeace is an environmental campaigning group with a wide range of interests which range (via GM foods) from the disposal of redundant oil rigs to the safety of the plastics used in the manufacture of children's toys.

The Web site is extensive and includes an archive of materials posted since 1994.

The genetic engineering section is campaign-oriented and is particularly critical of the information provided by Monsanto (a major agrochemical company with significant interests in GM) (see next article). Towards the end of 1998, Greenpeace obtained and released copies of Monsanto internal documents that recorded the difficulty of convincing the opinion-forming groups in the UK population of the benefits of GM foods.

Greenpeace is a very active organisation and its Web site reflects this activity - the material presented is changed regularly to maintain currency and interest. The URL is http://www.greenpeace.org/

Iceland plc

Iceland is a mainstream UK food retailer with particular interests in (as its name suggests) the sale of frozen foods.

Iceland, unlike other UK food retailers has taken a strongly "anti" position and has stated that it will ensure that "no Iceland own brand product manufactured after 1 May 1998 will contain any genetically modified ingredients". The company has indicated that, as it was the only food retailer in the UK to take such a stance; there were delays in tracing all ingredients to sources and hence this deadline was later than it would have preferred.

The site gives:

• •

  A statement from the company Founder and Chairman, Malcolm Walker CBE.

• •

  Discussion of "what is genetic modification".

• •

  Consideration of "is genetic modification safe?".

• •

  Discussion of the issue of consumer choice. This places particular attention on soya beans which are largely produced in the USA and where there has been no general procedure to ensure that GM soya is segregated from standard soya. As Iceland observes, correctly, it must now be assumed that the soya that occurs in most food products will include GM soya.

Iceland describe the steps taken to support its no-GM ingredients claims but observes that avoidance of GM products will become increasingly difficult as more crops include GM varieties.

It should be noted that Iceland has taken an early stance on other environmental/consumer issues such as supporting the campaign to ban whaling by boycotting products from whaling countries and by removing and recycling ozone-depleting gases from old freezers.

The URL is http://www.iceland.co.uk/

Since the GM foods issue emerged as an issue of public concern in early 1999, other supermarket groups have indicated in the media that they wish to follow a "no GM ingredients" similar to that adopted early in 1998 by Iceland. At the time of writing this article, none of the "big four" UK supermarket groups (TESCO, Sainsbury, ASDA and Somerfield) had posted an easily-accessible statement with respect to GM foods on their corporate Web sites.

The Natural Law Party

The Natural Law Party (NLP) is one of the minor, fringe, groups engaged with the UK parliamentary election system. Its candidates have received only minimal electoral support and none has been elected. However, the party has adopted a substantial anti-position with respect to GM foods and this is utilised as a strategy in its campaigns that focus on the "violation of natural law" by those responsible for national government. A part of this campaigning has been the creation of a substantial Web presence.

The site offers access to all the NLP press releases and other documents relating to its general philosophy (which most people will regard as somewhat bizarre) and to its position with respect to GM foods (which the Party regards as a serious health risk).

The GM foods section:

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  Explains why the NLP is concerned.

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  Describes what is meant by the term "genetic engineering".

• •

  Lists what it sees as the dangers associated with GM foods.

The NLP see GM foods as a "global threat to humanity's food supply" and suggests that scientific facts demonstrate the need for an immediate world-wide ban.

The URL is http://www.natural-law-party.org.uk/

The Media

The media, both print and broadcasting, have taken a generally "anti-GM" stance. By checking media archives it is possible to track the development of issues such as the GM concerns.

Newspapers and other print media are increasingly available via the Internet. The following list gives the URLs of a number of UK publications that provide full text Web editions:

• •

  The Times http://www.the-times.co.uk/

• •

  Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/

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  Daily Telegraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

• •

  Financial Times http://www.ft.com/

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  The Scotsman http://www.scotsman.com/

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  Belfast Telegraph http://belfasttelegraph.co.uk/

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  New Scientist http://newscientist.com/

• •

  The Economist http://economist.com/

Each of the above publications covered the GM food issue extensively in mid- to late-February 1999. Some of these Web sites require (free) registration.

Concluding note

As indicated in the Introduction section, the next article in this series will focus on a "Pro GM" group of Web sites. It is intended that readers should consider the two articles together, since a focus only on the sites reviewed in either article would give a very distorted view of the situation.

As always, readers are reminded that it is essential to check out the provenance of each Web site visited. This is particularly important when following links from the featured sites. Clearly, the originators of the site will wish to influence the reader, but it is essential that readers remember that site originators will have motives that may not always be immediately apparent. Links from featured sites may lead to further links (and so on) and to sites with dubious provenance.

Since GM foods remain somewhat controversial, readers are reminded to consider the following rules:

• •

  Consider the motives that underpin the establishment of a Web site.

• •

  Remember that the authors of the material presented are likely to be selective in their choices. Their selections are unlikely to be objective and may present a position which is misleading.

• •

  Links from featured sites may lead to others with very dubious credentials and even to those which reflect the views of a very small minority.

If you have identified a Web site likely to be of interest to readers of British Food Journal, please contact the author of this series of articles as follows: by e-mail to: stephen.fallows@luton.ac.uk by Fax to: 01234 766926 or 01582 743237; or by post at the University of Luton.

Stephen FallowsUniversity of Luton