Public wants GM food labelled
2012-06-28T09:46:35+10:00
Almost everyone agrees we should know what we’re eating, reports SIMON WEBSTER.
A staggering 96 per cent of Australians think genetically modified (GM) food should be labelled, according to a poll conducted by the Australian National University (ANU).
GM food in Australia comes from four main sources:
- Imported corn
- Imported soy
- Imported and local canola
- Imported and local cottonseed
Unfortunately for consumers, when these GM foods are highly refined (as in most processed food), fed to animals that we then eat, or served in restaurants, bakeries and takeaways, they are exempt from being identified as GM.
With soy alone present in 60 per cent of processed food, according to Greenpeace, almost all of us might be consuming GM food without knowing it.
It’s easy to see why food manufacturers are against stricter GM labelling laws: it would hurt sales. Fifty-four per cent of respondents in the ANU poll said they were not very likely or not all likely to buy food labelled as GM.
GM regulations as set down by Food and Safety Australia New Zealand can be found here.
