Consumers Union of Japan joined over 120 NGOs, individuals and companies that signed an advertisement published on February 7, 2008 in The Australian.
Stop Genetically Engineered food crops: Australia’s next cane toad
In recent years, a handful of multinational chemical companies have engineered new kinds of crops that could never occur in nature. These GE crops pose unacceptable risks to human health, the environment and the economy.
Against the interests of other states, the Victorian and New South Wales Governments recently announced they will allow their bans on GE food crops to expire end February 2008. The decision from South Australia is also pending. As a result, Australia is now on the brink of losing its green GE free status and economic advantage forever.
This decision will allow the commercial release of GE canola. Like cane toads, the release of GE canola would be irreversible, as GE canola crops can cross state borders and contaminate non-GE canola crops. It will remove choice from farmers who want to remain GE free.
No systems of segregating GE canola crops or contamination control have yet been devised. Therefore no State government should lift its GE ban without the agreement of all that will be affected.
(The entire text is available in the pdf file above)
For more information visit: