Irish agriculture will be subjected to even more economic pressures if Irish farmers row in with the EU and embrace intensive genetically modified (GM) crop production, Genetic Concern has claimed.
The environmental group accepted that larger farmers might benefit in cost terms from large scale GM crop production - but only where production is in massive holdings, common in France and Germany and not in Ireland.
In a 156-page report submitted to the Government yesterday, Genetic Concern made the case for Irish farmers seeking niche markets for non-GM food.
This course, it said, would secure premium prices if EU member-states accepted the overwhelming case for segregation of GM foods and non-modified produce. The report was issued ahead of a national policy on genetically modified organism (GMO) use and the labelling of GM foods, which the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, is finalising.
The report, Ireland, a GMO-free zone - niche markets and a positive alternative, evaluated other production models, including organic production and the use of integrated pesticide management.
"We are attempting to make a positive contribution to the consultation process initiated by Mr Dempsey," said its spokesman, Mr Quentin Gargan.
He added: "We believe Irish farmers will be even more disadvantaged by GM crops, and they are already under pressure. They must seek niche markets rather than try to compete with large GM crop-producing countries."
The report called for the Minister to facilitate this by declaring Ireland a "GMO-free zone", while farmers should "supply the growing market for segregated crops".
It advocated a moratorium on GM crop trials until the risks from "horizontal geneflow" between species is fully evaluated.
The report said the Government should support the ban on GM maize which Austria and Luxembourg have introduced. It underlined the case for independent scientific assessment of GM foods, as carried out with human medicines.
The record of multinational companies in carrying out their own research was questioned and concern expressed about the way Irish regulatory agencies "accept their research at face value".
The report urged the Government to follow its UK counterpart by setting up an independent "watchdog committee" to evaluate ethical issues and practical impacts of GM foods, with a strong input from consumer, environmental and health interests along with scientists.
On labelling GM foods, it said the coming into force this month of EU labelling guidelines on GM ingredients had left consumers "even more in the dark than ever". The most common forms in which genetically engineered corn and soya beans are used have all been excluded, it noted.
Starches, oils, fats, lecithins and additives are all exempt from the regulations, and will not need to be labelled. "These are estimated to account for some 80 to 90 per cent of all foods containing genetically engineered ingredients," it added.
Wrong information is worse in some ways than no information at all, Mr Gargan said.
"Consumers who wanted to avoid genetically engineered foods may think they are being given a choice but they are not," he claimed. A small number of foods would be labelled as containing genetically engineered ingredients, regardless of whether or not they do in practice.
"The situation is farcical and unless producers are forced to segregate genetically engineered crops from conventional ones, labelling in any form is going to be meaningless."
As the Government had admitted this in its consultation paper, the only logical course for it was to make labelling meaningful and ensure a proper choice for consumers by demanding segregation at EU level, the report said.
