GM Crops Not Wanted
By George Anderson
The chief executives of the UK chains, Tesco, Sainsbury, Safeway and Asda plan
to tell ministers that their customers do not want products made from genetically
modified (GM) foods and they have no plans on stocking them.
Reuters reports today’s “meeting comes just a few weeks after the British Retail
Consortium, representing 90 percent of the country’s High-Street stores, told
government agriculture officials they would still refuse to stock GM produce,
even if farmers were given the green light to grow the crops on a commercial
scale”.
Moderator’s Comment: How are (or should) global and
local concerns affect the production of foods containing ingredients from GM
crops?
The British government will decide, probably later this
year, whether or not it will allow farmers to grow GM crops commercially. As
in other places, the debate seems to be coming down to scientific evidence versus
consumer fears. [George
Anderson – Moderator]