From the DAILY MAIL, Saturday, February 27, 1999
GENETIC FOOD WATCH
TOP-BRAND FOODS MADE WITH MUTANT CROPS,
AND THE COMPANIES DON’T EVEN KNOW IT
by SEAN POULTER, Consumer Affair Correspondent
The creeping progress of ‘Frankenstein’ ingredients into our diets is exposed again today with laboratory tests showing their unlabelled presence in four top food brands.
Processed foods sold under the names of Tesco, Linda McCartney, Realeat and So Good were all found to contain genetically-modified soya, with no reference to it on the packaging.
The results mean all four companies are technically in breach of EU labelling laws which came into effect on September 1.
There is no evidence they have tried to dupe consumers. All insisted that they have made strenuous efforts either to ensure GM ingredients are not present or to offer accurate labelling.
But the reality is that GM ingredients are now so prevalent in the food chain that it is very difficult to identify them.
The ingredient in all four cases was Roundup Ready soya, created by U.S. biotech giant Monsanto, which has spread throughout the food chain because producers in the U.S. mix it in with natural crops exported around the world.
The findings are particularly troubling for the makers of So Good soya milk, as the company is among the few food firms who go so far as to claim on the label that it is GM-free.
Sales of the product have boomed recently, with demand outstripping supply as a result of a television advertising campaign fronted by Caron Keating.
The research also confirms earlier tests by the BBC which found that a vegetarian mince from the Linda McCartney range contained GM ingredients.
Sir Paul McCartney, a vehement opponent of GM food, said last night he was determined to rid all products sold under his late wife’s name of mutant ingredients.
‘Pointing out this problem helps us try to pinpoint where this stuff is getting in,’ his spokesman told the Mail. ‘We do checks all the way down the line but it is becoming increasingly problematic to ensure there is purity. This is an infestation. Paul is absolutely adamant that we are going to be totally GM-free, whatever that takes.’
The four products were among 20 selected by our researchers because they contained high levels of soya or maize but were not labelled as containing GM ingredients.
The companies pointed out that just because GM ingredients were found in one batch of products, it did not mean they were present in all those now on the shelves.
A Tesco spokesman said: ‘Our own tests have shown this product to be clear. The ingredients come from a reputable source. However as a result of the Daily Mail tests we are now doing extensive testing again to double-check.’ Some of the companies questioned the accuracy of the tests, despite the fact they were carried out by a Government laboratory.
A spokesman for United Biscuits, which makes the Linda McCartney range under licence, said: ‘The only possible reason for the presence of GM would be from inadvertent factors, such as windborne pollen or perhaps a harvester which has previously worked in a GM field. Any such presence would be occasional and at minuscule levels in the order of parts per million. We remain totally committed to a non-GM policy and are doing everything we can to achieve it.’
A spokesman for So Good said: ‘We are surprised and disturbed by the findings since the ingredients suppliers for So Good guarantee that our soy protein comes from non-GM sources. So Good is investigating this situation as a matter of the utmost urgency.’
Haldane Foods, which makes Realeat Vege Mince, insisted that its products are made from non-GM soya. ‘Working in close cooperation with suppliers, we have an identity preservation system which achieves the highest possible degree of segregation,’ said a spokesman. ‘An independent third party laboratory carries out spot checking for DNA.’
The September regulation from Brussels makes the labelling of genetically-modified soya and maize compulsory.
But the Government has dragged its feet over the formulation of penalties. Officials blamed delays in the consultation procedure and a decision to bring restaurants under the same laws.
An announcement is expected next week.
IN DETAIL
Information gathered and transfered to word.doc on 28th March,1999 by Vera Henderson