Posted on 20th November 2001

Supermarket Progressive Past GM


Auckland 20th November 2001.

Greenpeace today welcomed a statement from
Progressive Enterprises Ltd that will see them becoming the first
supermarket chain in New Zealand to go GE free in their own brands.


The policy outlined “the goal of Progressive Enterprises Ltd that our
Signature Range and Basics branded products will not be sourced from
ingredients derived from genetically modified crops”. “People do not want
to be part of a GE experiment that could effect our environment and our
health, and Progressive has clearly acknowledged this. They have ensured
that <bold>all</bold> ingredients will be from GE free sources. This
goes above and beyond the ANZFA labelling laws that take effect in a few
weeks and is another significant move in the global rejection of genetic
engineering.” said Annette Cotter, Greenpeace GE campaigner.


Progressive holds about a quarter of the New Zealand retail grocery
market and operates the Foodtown, Countdown and 3Guys supermarket banner
groups. Progressive is also the franchise co- ordinator for the
FreshChoice and SuperValue banner groups. “Progressive have taken the
lead and are the first supermarket chain to commit to a GE free policy
for their own brands. Now other supermarket chains like Woolworths and
New World (Foodstuffs) need to continue the trend and make the same
commitment,” said Ms Cotter.


This week in the United States, a similar commitment was made by Trader
Joe’s, the first mainstream supermarket chain in the US to do so. Trader
Joe's has agreed to ban genetically engineered ingredients from its
thousands of own brand products. The company stated that ‘the majority
of our customers would prefer to have products made without genetically
engineered ingredients’.


Progressive’s policy comes as Greenpeace continues to distribute the
second version of the GE Free Food Guide, which outlines the GE status
of food products and companies in New Zealand. The guide is available on
the web at
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