Archived press release

Supermarkets supporting GM through the back door

6 September 2006

A new survey by Friends of the Earth, reveals that most animal products sold in supermarkets, including milk, cheese and meat, come from animals fed on GM feeds [1]. But consumers are not aware of what they are buying, with five out of 10 supermarkets failing to tell customers when food comes from animals fed on genetically modified feed.

The results come as a new GfK NOP Omnibus poll for Friends of the Earth and GM Freeze found that 87 per cent of the public think that foods from animals fed on a GM diet should be labelled [2]. Animal products produced using GM feed are currently exempt from labelling requirements [3].

Friends of the Earth surveyed the 10 main supermarkets’ policies on GM animal feed. The results showed that supermarkets providing the fewest non-GM fed options were Budgens, which only sources non-GM fed poultry and pork, Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Iceland and Somerfield, which only source non-GM eggs, poultry and farmed fish (Morrisons additionally provides non-GM fed New Zealand lamb).

Marks & Spencer had the widest selection of non-GM fed products including fresh milk, meat, poultry, eggs and fish. Sainsbury’s, the Co-op and Waitrose source a number of non-GM fed products but could do more.

Friends of the Earth’s GM Campaigner, Clare Oxborrow said:

“Most people think that supermarkets are GM free, but thousands of tones of GM soya and maize are coming into the UK to feed the animals producing the meat, milk and other dairy products found on their shelves. Consumers clearly want to avoid food with GM ingredients but the information just is not made available.

“The intensive production of GM crops for animal feed is associated with damaging environmental and social impacts around the world. The failure of food companies to demand non-GM feed is making these problems worse - and could also result in a shortage of GM-free ingredients for food. Supermarkets must do more to phase out the use of GM animal feed, provide accurate information to help their customers choose non-GM options and contribute to finding sustainable alternatives to imported, intensively farmed animal feeds.”

Friends of the Earth also posed as a customer and contacted the 10 main supermarkets to ask them to specify which of their products come from animals not fed a GM diet. Half of them, including Tesco and Asda, failed to answer the basic question.

The majority of GM crops grown are used for animal feed (primarily soya and maize). Environmental campaigners are concerned by the trend as growing GM crops is leading to further intensification of farming practices, environmental damage and negative social impacts [4]. The failure to take action to replace GM in animal feed will make it more and more difficult for food companies to source non-GM ingredients, like soya, for food [5].

GM Freeze Co-ordinator Carrie Stebbings said:

"The public has made it clear that it wants foods produced from GM-fed animals to be labelled. Supermarkets have the ability to trace the majority of animal products back to the farms they have come from, so there is no reason for them not to specify non-GM animal feeds. The only explanation for their failure to do this appears to be cost - it seems for many companies shareholders come before the interests of their customers".

Opinion poll surveys show that consumers have rejected GM, with the latest Eurobarometer poll concluding that “overall Europeans think that GM food should not be encouraged. GM food is widely seen as not being useful, as morally unacceptable and as a risk for society” [6].

Meanwhile, the UK Government has launched a public consultation on GM and non-GM crop “coexistence” in England, revealing plans to allow widespread GM contamination of conventional and organic crops [7].

Friends of the Earth is encouraging the public to contact their supermarkets and demand action to stop using GM animal feed: www.foe.co.uk/campaigns/real_food/press_for_change/gm_labelling/index.html

Notes

[1] www.foe.co.uk/resource/evidence/gm_feed_table.pdf (PDF)

[2] NOP GFK Omnibus interviewed 1000 UK adults aged 16+ over the dates 9th-11th June 2006. Results were weighted in order to be nationally representative.

[3] Article 12 of EU Regulation 1829/2003 requires food and animal feed ingredients containing or consisting of GMOs or produced from GMOs to be labelled if the adventitious (accidental) GM presence is 0.9% or above. Animal products produced using GM feed are exempt from labelling.

[4] Herbicide use has increased in the US since GM crops started to be grown. Globally, three multinational biotech companies (Monsanto, Bayer and Syngenta) control virtually all commercially grown GM crops globally, leading to an imbalance of power in the food chain. Worldwide, four crops (cotton, maize, oilseed rape and soya) make up 99% of the world's acreage of GM crops. Soya alone covers over 60% mainly from USA and Argentina. The vast majority of this is used to feed animals in intensive farming systems in developed countries – producing the milk, meat and dairy sold in supermarkets.

Further information can be found in the report GM crops: Who benefits? (PDF†)

[5] Most soya planted is for animal feed (about 80%). If there is little demand from food companies for non-GM soya for animal feed, there is no incentive to stop farmers in Brazil (where most non-GM soya is currently still grown) planting GM soya, which is being heavily promoted by the GM industry. Many processed food ingredients, like soya lecithin and vegetable oil, found in lots of foods, from biscuits, to ready meals to chocolate, are by-products from the soya crushed for animal feed. Therefore, companies need to demand non-GM soya for animal feed to secure future non-GM soya ingredients for our food.

[6] June 2006 http://ec.europa.eu/research/press/2006/pr1906en.cfm

[7] www.stopgmcontamination.org

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust