Chain stands by 'Frankenfoods'
COMTEX Newswire
Freitag, 24. Dezember 1999 02:27:00
Johannesburg (Business Day, December 23, 1999) - Shoprite Checkers
followed Pick 'n Pay yesterday in saying it would not clear its shelves
of genetically modified food. This followed an announcement by
Woolworths earlier this week in which it said it planned to remove the
food from its shelves, assess it for "harmful effects" and label the
food where alternative ingredients to genetically engineered
ingredients could not be found.
Shoprite Checkers marketing manager Brian Weyers, backed by Pick 'n Pay
and a new organisation claiming to inform the public on biotechnology,
AfricaBio, dismissed suggestions that the food was a health hazard.
"It is not necessary to withdraw it and there is in any case no way of
knowing which food has been modified," he said.
"It has been with us for six years. Without it, people will die of
hunger and starvation."
Woolworths, backed by the SA Federation Against Genetic Engineering,
said the food was on SA supermarket shelves, but with no legislation
forcing companies to label products that contained genetically
engineered ingredients.
Weyers supported the view that the food should be labelled.
"The trade must protect the right of the consumer to know what he is
buying and to be able to make a choice. However, it is extremely
difficult to know which maize or soya has been modified. Our suppliers
assured us that none of the products that we stock contain it."
SA, under the health department, was working towards devising labelling
policies on genetically modified food.
Soya, maize, tomato and potatoes that have been engineered are imported
from the US and engineered maize and cotton are grown in SA.
Weyers said the health department had declared the imports safe. The
soya and maize is used extensively in processed food like polonies and
sauces.
Woolworths said it was the first SA food store to withdraw the
engineered products from its shelves, but declined to name the
quantities to be removed or the date by which all shelves would be
cleared or labelled.
Genetically engineered food results from the use of biotechnology to
remove artificially or introduce a specific gene into another organism
to boost a certain trait such as drought resistance in maize. It has
been used in the manufacture of medicines for years, but some
scientists feel that not enough research has been done to determine any
possibly harmful effects.
AfricaBio spokesman Jocelyn Webster said: "The decision by Woolworths
has drastic implications for the majority of South Africans . We
strongly advise Woolworths to check the information they receive."
By Louise Cook
Copyright 1999 Business Day. Distributed via Africa News Online.
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