FED: NSW Farmers against new labelling decision
AAP 22.12.98 05:40
Copyright 1998 The Australian Associated Press. Redistribution
unauthorised.
SYDNEY, Dec 22 AAP - Food would become more expensive because of
a decision to label all food which may be genetically modified,
the New South Wales Farmers Association claimed today.
Meeting as the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Council last
week, health ministers agreed by majority vote to require
labelling, contrary to calls from industry body, the Australian
Food Council.
NSW Farmers Grains director Glenn Dalton said today the new
measures could not be accurately achieved.
"The attempt to achieve it in order to give consumers a
choice will very substantially increase the costs of all
foodstuffs," Mr Dalton said in a statement.
"This point has been made repeatedly to the governments -
the majority of whom have chosen to ignore it."
If the manufacturer knows the product is free of genetically
modified material, there will be no requirement to label the
product.
But it may be labelled as free of genetically modified material,
the council decided.
The states and the Commonwealth will have to negotiate in coming
months about definitions and changes to the Food Standards Code
to introduce the changes.
Mr Dalton said the decision would also have trading implications
for Australia.
"(Governments) have chosen to ignore the trading
implications for Australia of having rules which are much more
restrictive than those of other major trading blocs around the
world," he said.
"Genetic engineering is here to stay. It is not going to go
away as a force in world food production because of the decisions
taken last week by the Australian Health Ministers."
AAP sb