Home > Press releases > 1999
22 Dec 1999
The canteen at Monsanto's UK HQ has banned GM ingredients from its
food Friends of the Earth has learnt. The catering company which runs
the canteen, Sutcliffe Catering, which is owned by Granada Food Services,
has “taken the decision to remove, as far as is practicable,
GM soya and maize from all food products served in our restaurant”.
A policy statement to customers explains that Granada has taken the
decision “to ensure that you,the customer, can feel confident
in the food we serve.”
The past year has seen a dramatic public reaction to GM food and ingredients.
As a result of public pressure and campaigning by FOE and others, food
manufacturers, supermarkets and restaurants have been forced to remove
GM ingredients. These include:
*
MPs in the House of Commons are now being served
food that avoids GM ingredients“in response to the general unease
about such foods expressed by significant numbers of our customers”
a statement from the House of Commons Refreshment Department confirms.
Caterers at the Welsh and Scottish assemblies also have a policy of
avoiding GM ingredients. And last week FOE revealed that the European
Parliament has also banned GM food.
*
Restaurant chains are also getting rid of GM
food. A FOE survey in September showed that most of the UK's top chains,
including MacDonalds, Domino Pizza and Wimpy have removed GM ingredients,
with most getting rid of GM derivatives as well.
*
Supermarkets have also been forced to respond.
By the end of the year all the leading supermarkets will have removed
GM ingredients from their own label food, and are phasing out GM derivatives.
*
A FOE survey in May revealed that 24 of the
top 30 food manufacturers operating in the UK said that they had either
removed GM ingredients and derivatives, or were removing them.
Adrian Bebb, Food Campaigner at Friends of the Earth said:
“Monsanto won't be having a very happy Christmas this year.
The public has made its concerns about GM ingredients very clear - now
it appears that even Monsanto's own catering firm has no confidence
in this new technology.”
“Throughout the year the campaign against GM food has had remarkable
success with retailers, restaurants and manufacturers forced to remove
GM ingredients from, the food they sell. This is a tremendous victory
for consumers. What people want is real food, food that they can trust
and food that hasn't been tampered with. However, companies must go
further and ensure that all their ingredients and derivatives come from
GM-free crops and that the meat and dairy products they sell are from
animals not reared on GM animal feed.
Policy statements from Granada (Sutcliffe Catering) and the House
of Commons are available from FOE.
Contact details:
Friends of the Earth
26-28 Underwood St.
LONDON
N1 7JQ
Tel: 020 7490 1555
Fax: 020 7490 0881
Web: www.foe.co.uk/feedback.html
Media team
