Posted on 30-10-2002

Fair Food

The Labour weekend balloon - release commemorating 12 months to the end of
the government's moratorium on GE releases -was completed today when
hundreds of children in Pukekohe held the last of 28 events nationwide.

The event aimed at protecting the future for New Zealand's production of
GE-Free foods comes at the same time as the market trend to natural foods
is being signalled at the world's'largest food fair being held in Paris. A
report by news-agency Reuters confirms the trend to natural, healthy
products in overseas markets. The report backs up warnings that GE release
threatens to destabilise New Zealand's economy that benefits to the tune of
billions of dollars from our positioning as an exporter of clean- green
-natural produce.

Today's Pukekohe release, together with events in Waitahanui and
Christchurch , will mark the end of the events symbolising the spread of GE
pollen which has occurred overseas and which will threaten the survival of
GE-Free agriculture if allowed in Aotearoa New Zealand. There is growing
scientific evidence that environmental release of GE will contaminate
non-GE agriculture, but that these unmanageable risks are being ignored by
the government under pressure from the Life Sciences industry. There are
plans to allow "Conditional release" of GE organisms proposed in a
discussion document from the Ministry for the Environment, but experience
has already shown buffer-zones and other controls cannot prevent
contamination.

The GE-push from our government will be a disaster if it doesn't
incorporate ethical and cultural considerations and preserves the biggest
opportunity for New Zealand- which is GE-Free production. Liability for
risking - (and in all likelihood destroying) -the GE-Free opportunity must
rest with those corporations demanding GE release.

Prevention is the only option to prevent seepage into the mainstream food
supply. Once again the Public urge the Government to "preserve our GE-Free
opportunities."

More information Jon Carapiet 09 815 3370