AUS: Australian majority wants GM food labelled

By: just-food.com | 22 September 2008

Around 90% of Australians want better labelling of food products that could contain genetically modified ingredients, according to new research.

The Newspoll survey released today (22 September) by Greenpeace shows that, when asked if food products from GM crops and animals fed with GM feed should or should not be labelled, 90% of the respondents said "it should".

Only 2% of the respondents said they were more likely to buy a product "if they knew" it contained GM ingredients, as opposed to majority of 54% who said they were less likely to buy it.

Michelle Sheather, Greenpeace genetic engineering campaigner, said: "It is very clear that Australians want to avoid GM food and want it clearly labelled. However, glaring loopholes in our current labelling laws do not leave shoppers with a choice."

According to Greenpeace, current laws exempt oils and products from animals fed GM feed from being labelled. GM canola is now being grown in Victoria and New South Wales for the first time in Australia and may slip into the food chain unlabelled through canola oil, which is used in a wide range of products and as animal feed.

"It is really difficult to understand why there has been resistance to labelling of all genetically modified food," said Michael Moore, CEO of Public Health Association of Australia. "It is appropriate for individuals to be able to make their own decisions about what they wish to consume. This is why labelling is a key element of any sensible policy on such foods."

Sheather added: "NSW and Victoria are not using adequate procedures to segregate the GE canola from the conventional crop. This leaves food and feed companies as much in the dark as consumers."

Newspoll surveyed 1,200 Australians aged over 18 years.

Sectors: Food safety, Retail