Just a spoonful of sugar ... might make the medicine be needed ...
For those of you with a sweet tooth, watch out for US products containing sugar. American Crystal and several other leading US sugar providers have announced they will be sourcing their sugar from GM 'Roundup Ready' sugar beet. This will arrive, unlabelled, in the stores over there in 2008.
Candy companies, like Hershey's, are urging farmers not to plant GM noting that consumer surveys suggest resistance to the product. Theoretically, these should not be imported into Europe where they are illegal unless labelled, but past experience of GM contamination incidents, do not inspire confidence. There's a petition to 'Stop Genetically Engineered Sugar Beets' on the 'Organic Consumers Association' website at www.democracyinaction.org.
Keen to be green?
For those of you keen to tackle the problem of excess packaging in your shopping basket, watch out for PLA (polylactic acid) biodegradable plastic. It sounds great until you realise that:
- A lot of it will get mixed up with all the other types of plastics and end up in landfill, or, will contaminate the existing plastics recycling stream.
- Large amounts of good agri-land are being used to produce it instead of food.
- It is made from cornstarch, lots of which will be GM.
If this ever appears on the shop shelves, it will be easy to avoid, but be sure to tell the company using it that you will boycott their product unless they can guarantee it comes from a sustainable, non-GM source and there is actually some way of ensuring it is actually composted, not just compostable.
Make 2008 a 'Ban-GMOs' year.
We have had a global day of information on GMOs in 2006, a global month of non-GMO events in 2207. The next step is to join the people from the 26 countries who have already responded positively to the idea, and declare 2008 a 'Ban-GMOs Year'.
In the Government's consultation on co-existence of GM and non-GM crops, carried out in preparation for the implementation of GM agriculture in the UK in 2008, 97% of over 11,000 public respondents expressed opposition. Be prepared for 2008 to be the year when our Government , elected by democratic process, also has to govern by democratic process. Check out www.alter.campagne.net.
HAVE A GREAT , NON-GM, CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR!
SOURCES
- Friends of the Earth Press Release 8.11.07
- www.altercampagne.net/ 20.11.07
- Organic Consumers Association 16.10.07
- Plastics and Rubber Weekly 9.11.07