Archived press release

Government approach to GM reporting is illegal

17 September 2002

Crucial information on the performance of GM crop trials could be being overlooked because the Government is breaking the law on monitoring and reporting, Friends of the Earth said today. The group has written to the Secretary of State for DEFRA Margaret Beckett, raising concerns about the biotech industry monitoring reports accepted by her department, following advice that they are illegal.

The environmental group consulted top lawyers after seeing a copy of a post-release monitoring report submitted by Aventis CropScience (now Bayer CropScience), covering the winter oilseed rape Farm Scale Trials in 2000/01. The report, which covered 28 different sites from Durham to Dorset was just two sentences in length. It read:

“The plants grew normally in comparison to non-GM crops, no unexpected events occurred and proceeded to normal harvest, except for High Halden, which was sown late and never established properly. This was ploughed in in November.”

Friends of the Earth’s lawyers concluded:

“… a report like the Aventis report is not a legally adequate discharge of its license and statutory obligations, and the Secretary of State is acting contrary to law in accepting such reports as compliant.”

Friends of the Earth believes the Secretary of State is in breach of her legal obligations by accepting ”wholly inadequate” reports from the biotechnology companies. Key issues relating to the legal conditions in the farm-scale trial consent issued by DEFRA, such as cross-pollination of neighbouring crops, are seldom reported on by the biotech companies. The environmental campaign group is calling for clear guidance to be issued setting out the type of information that the biotech companies need to provide in their monitoring reports.

Commenting Phil Michaels, Friends of the Earth’s Legal Advisor, said:
“DEFRA has let the biotech corporations get away with the barest minimum of reporting. But the legislation clearly requires evidence that monitoring has taken place. Without that information it is impossible for the Secretary of State properly to evaluate the risk posed by the crops to human health and the environment.

“As things stand, reports could be written without the companies leaving their offices. DEFRA must tighten up the reporting requirements and make the biotech companies take their responsibilities for human health and the environment seriously”.

Notes

Copies of Friends of the Earth’s letter to the Secretary of State for the Environment, Margaret Beckett and of the legal opinion are available from the press office at Friends of the Earth.

If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust