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May 1999

Letter To The Financial Times Regarding The Significance Of GM Crops For The Developing Countries
29/5/99, Sussex University
As a co-author of the Nuffield Bioethics Council's report, Professor Michael Lipton responds to the statement by Alan Simms of Christian Aid that GM foods are unnecessary because 'there is more than enough food to feed everybody in the world'.

Health Implications Of Genetically Modified Foods
28/5/99, Department of Health (UK)
We have considered the processes used in genetic modification in relation to events occurring in nature and in conventional plant breeding and we conclude that there is no current evidence to suggest that the process of genetic modification is inherently harmful. Nevertheless, nothing can be absolutely certain in a field of rapid scientific and technological development.

Moral Imperative For Making GM Crops Available To Countries That Want Them Is Compelling, But Additional Safeguards Are Needed
27/5/99, Nuffield Council on Bioethics
There is a compelling moral imperative to make genetically modified crops readily available to developing countries who want them, to help combat world hunger and poverty. However, new measures are needed to minimise risks and to realise benefits that GM crops may offer, a report from the Nuffield Council on Bioethics says today.

Think Tank Urges Use Of Altered Crops
27/5/99, United Press International
The influential British think-tank Nuffield Council on Bioethics reports a moral obligation exists for the world's scientific community to develop genetically modified crops.

New Measures On Biotechnology Announced
21/5/99, Cabinet Office
New measures were announced today aimed at strengthening the protection of public health and the environment, while allowing the biotechnology industry to develop and demonstrate its potential benefits.

Dr Cunningham Welcomes Science And Technology Committee Report
19/5/99, Cabinet Office
The Government today welcomed the report of the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee, published yesterday, on the Scientific Advisory System: Genetically Modified Foods.

BIO Responds To Nature Report On Bt Threat To Monarch Butterflies
19/5/99, Monsanto Company
BIO Vice President of Food & Agriculture L. Val Giddings, Ph.D. released the following statement in response to scientific correspondence published in the journal Nature (20 May 1999). The letter to Nature asserts that pollen from Bt corn can negatively affect growth and survival of the larvae of the Monarch butterfly. BIO offers the following statement...

The Advisory Committee On Novel Foods And Processes Reviews Dr Pusztai's Potato Findings
17/5/99, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Having carefully examined Dr Pusztai's findings the ACNFP concluded that no meaningful conclusions could be drawn from the data made available to the ACNFP on the effect of feeding rats GM potatoes expressing the snowdrop lectin.

GM Foods As Safe As Conventional Conterparts
13/5/99, Irish Times
A Food Safety Authority of Ireland report prepared by a committee including leading public health specialists, nutrition experts and plant biologists was cited as finding that GM foods on sale in Ireland are as safe as their conventionally-grown counterparts although GM foods on the market do not provide any additional nutritional benefit for consumers, but this may change in time.

GM Foods Report Puts Reason Back In Debate
13/5/99, Irish Times
Confusion and hysteria marking much of the GM food debate have been countered by calm and reasoned assessment from the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, according to this story. For many months the Food Safety Authority of Ireland has, the story says, been one of the few State agencies daring enough to attempt to unknot what are often terribly conflicting messages.

Genetic Engineering: Sifting The Facts From The Fiction
11/5/99, Evening Standard
According to Massey University plant biology professor Paula Jameson, New Zealand should take on board recent advances in biotechnology, using the best of both conventional and organic practices -- and the best of recombinant DNA technologies -- to produce a sustainable agriculture system that will feed the world in 2025.

Monsanto Response To Christian Aid Report
10/5/99, Monsanto Company
Monsanto responds to a Christian Aid Monitor and restates how biotechnology can help farmers in Third World.

Nestle's Brabeck Committed To R&D Spending On GM Food
6/5/99, AFX News
Nestle SA chief executive Peter Brabeck said the company remains committed to R&D spending on genetically modified food, which he said offers the "best option" to tackle global food needs into the future.

Monsanto Claims Organic Lobby Stirs GM Fears To Protect Market
4/5/99, Irish Times
Fears about GM foods are being unnecessarily increased by the organic farming and organic wholefood lobbies who feel their niche markets may be threatened, the Irish head of Monsanto, Dr Patrick O'Reilly, has said.

Sticky Labels
1/5/99, The Economist
Applying labels to novel foods sounds like an easy way to balance the opposing wishes of producers and consumers. The reality is more complex.