No One Wants GE Canola, So Why Grow it in WA?
The WA Premier Colin Barnett has said he wants to see genetically engineered (GE) canola produced in Western Australia. It is hard to see why when there is no market in the world that wants it.
Last week Greenpeace launched the 2010 Truefood Guide. It rates over a thousand of Australia’s top food and beverage brands on their use of GE ingredients and clearly demonstrates the overwhelming rejection of GE food by the Australian food industry. Since the release of the first Truefood Guide in 2003, more than half of Australia’s top food brands have committed to non-GE policies. This year industry giants like Nestlé, Foster’s and Schweppes have joined the Truefood Guide “green” list. Companies are now seriously listening to consumer concerns about GE foods.
Importantly, most of the food brands that use canola have policies to keep GE ingredients out of their products. These include Goodman Fielder (Meadow Lea), Unilever (Flora), Peerless (Tablelands), Coles, IGA and Foodland.
The same rejection of GE canola can be found in our key export markets. Two major grain buyers, Elders and CBH, have refused to buy GE canola from NSW and Victoria this year due to pressure from the food industry in Australia, Europe and Japan.
In an interview with the Stock and Land Elders Toepfer Grain canola trader Felix Mueller said his company was not buying GE canola due to European resistance. “For export, GM is not workable,” he said. “You won’t get it into Europe and I don’t think the Japanese are particularly keen on it.” He said Elders Toepfer was not buying GE canola, as there was sufficient non-GE to meet their needs.
The buyers are also avoiding purchasing non-GE canola from silos handling GE material because of concerns that it may be contaminated. Segregation of non-GE and GE canola failed in Canada and there is no reason to suggest the same won’t happen here.
GrainCorp (the company that handles Australia’s grains) was also forced to reverse its decision to mix GE canola in with the main crop, following intense pressure from farmers and industry.
Over the next couple of months the WA Government will decide whether to allow the commercial production of GE canola. Please take the time to contact the WA Premier Colin Barnett and let him know what you think of his support for GE canola:
Honourable Colin Barnett MEc MLA
Premier; Minister for State Development
Address: 24th Floor, Governor Stirling Tower, 197 St Georges Terrace, PERTH WA 6000
Telephone: 9222 9888
Fax: 9322 1213
e-Mail: wa-government@dpc.wa.gov.au
November 6th, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Crops of GM Canola are being grown in the Southwest of W.A. Australia. Some too near to organic farmers.Sheep seem to have been sacrificed for the GM Canola I suspect it will be harvested and brought into Cranbrook CBH bins. Where to then I do not know. I am really worried about this as I, & everybody else, drive past the crops in huge paddocks & know they will be sprayed with herbicides for ‘cleaner ‘ crops for Harvesting . So I am sure the dust from this harvested GM Canola will be flying around the neighbourhood & beyond together with the herbicides. I am only approx 3 blocks away from the bins.
How does this fit in with CBH not buying the Canola?
Ina Poole
November 6th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
I need to add, & it is obvious that I am against GM Canola being grown & all GM grown foods.
November 7th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
Everyone I know or have spoken to about Genetically Modified crops to, have not bought, or would contemplate buying any products containing them either now or in the future.
If in any doubt as to whether a product contains GM crop products, we have all agreed that we would forgo buying the product rather than risk eating or using them.
If there is not a law demanding that foods containing GM crops or their by products be so labelled, then we would be restricting our buying only to products that guarantee no GM crops or their products are used.
Unless stated, I personally would also assume that many big name brands did contain them, so would cease buying or using their products, unless guaranteed they were GM free.
The lack of a market for GE canola would make it a very bad financial move to allow it to be farmed in WA, as once it is farmed, there’s no going back to being able to guarantee that crops later farmed there are not contaminated.