FARMERS SAY 'NO' TO GENETIC ENGINEERING

26 January 2000

MONTREAL -- Farmers around the world view genetic engineering (GE) as a threat to their livelihood said five farmers today from Brazil, Mexico, the US, Canada and France.

The statement was made at a press conference, organised by Greenpeace and Third World Network, to allow the voice of the small and independent farmers to be heard at the Biosafety negotiations in Montreal where delegations from 180 countries are meeting to negotiate an international agreement to regulate global trade in genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

Farmers in Mexico, Brazil and France are facing extra costs to satisfy the demand for food that is GE-free . Demand for certifications that guarantee crops are not genetically contaminated, has created new testing, labelling and transport costs for farmers. "These costs should be borne by biotech industry, not by us," said Antônio Wunsch from Brazil and Jean-Yves Griot from France.

In Mexico, which is the home of the a vast majority of the world's corn crop, small and indigenous farmers are worried about the genetic contamination of their traditional varieties. "There are about 5000 traditional varieties of maize in Mexico and we could lose them," said Porfirio Encino from Mexico.

In industrialised countries, where organic produce is the fastest growing food trend, organic farmers are facing a new threat: the loss of their livelihood due to genetic contamination of their crops. "When GE pollen from a neighbouring field contaminates an organic crop, the farmer could lose his organic status which he has worked years to achieve," said organic farmer Steven Gilman from the US.

In Canada, about 60 per cent of canola is GE. The unintended contamination of conventional canola by GE crops in the fields and during transport makes all attempts to segregate futile. "We are told by consumers to start segregating, but it does not work and we are losing our market. A moratorium on new crops is now insufficient. We have to first clean up the mess created by the GE canola," said Hart Haiden from Canada.

Greenpeace and Third World Network are calling on all governments at the Biosafety negotiations to stop genetic pollution and protect farmers and their livelihoods. The experience of these farmers illustrates the need for a Biosafety Protocol that allows countries to decide whether or not they want to import GE grain and crops on the basis of a consideration of the environmental, health and socio-economic impacts and the use of the precautionary principle. They are also calling on governments not to allow releases of GMOs into centers of diversity from where the world's food sources orginate.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Available for interview are: Chee Yoke Ling of Third World Network; Benny Hearlin of Greenpeace; Steve Gilman (USA), Hart Haiden (Canada), Porfirio Encino (Mexico), Antônio Wunsch (Brazil) and Jean-Yves Griot (France).

- Mika Railo, Greenpeace International Press Officer in Montreal, +31 6 212 969 08

Follow the Biosafety Protocol negotiations on the web: www.greenpeace.org/~geneng/highlights/bio/montreal.htm