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GMO crop scandal - Did Syngenta's illegal corn come to Europe?

Brussels, 23 March 2005 - Friends of the Earth has written to the European Commission asking for urgent reassurance that unapproved genetically modified (GM) corn has not been imported into Europe. The threat was highlighted as Swiss-based Syngenta admitted yesterday that they inadvertently sold hundreds of tonnes of the wrong GM corn to US farmers over the past four years.

According to Nature, who published a story on their website last night (22 March), Syngenta produced and sold several hundred tonnes of a corn containing an insecticide, called Bt10 between 2001 and 2004. The corn has not been approved for human consumption anywhere worldwide. According to the article, Syngenta and the US Government have been in discussions since last year over what should be done about the error, and how and when information should be released to the public.

Adrian Bebb, GM campaigner for Friends of the Earth said:

"This is an industry out of control. For four years Syngenta failed to notice that they were selling farmers an unapproved genetically modified seed. How are consumers and farmers supposed to trust them to produce our food in the future? This case makes a complete mockery of the US regulatory system for GM crops. To make matters worse the US Government has known about this accident for months and together with Syngenta decided to keep it a secret until now. This is complete scandal."

"Friends of the Earth is seeking urgent assurances from the European Commission that this corn was not imported illegally into Europe. The public will be concerned that they may have been exposed to unapproved GM foods and will demand answers. The Commission should insist that the US withdraws all corn suspected of contamination."

Contact:
Adrian Bebb, + 49 1609 490 1163 (mobile)

http://www.nature.com/news/2005/050321/full/nature03570.html

Friends of the Earth Europe campaigns for sustainable and fair societies and for the protection of the environment,
unites more than 30 national organisations with thousands of local groups
and is part of the world's largest grassroots environmental network, Friends of the Earth International.