Submission to the Review of Food Labelling Law and Policy

I believe that as consumers we deserve to know every ingredient that is put into the food we are eating. Whether or not the ingredient that we are eating is good or bad, whether or not the consumer is pro GM or anti GM is irrelevant. If labelling does not list every ingredient than our choice as consumers is being taken away. It is our democratic right that we can buy something and know what it is we are eating.

The main points that I wish to submit are:

·  GM crops should only be approved if they are proven to be safe 'beyond reasonable doubt' using evidence from independent, long-term, published studies - measuring indicators relevant to human health.

·  All foods derived from GM crops must be clearly labelled, including highly processed products such as oils, starches and sugars from GM crops; and meat, milk, cheese and eggs from animals fed GM feed.

I would also like to respond to what I believe are the four most important questions for GM labelling in the report which are:

Q2. All food labelling should be truthful, transparent, accurate, honest, informative and not a promotion. We want the information on the product itself at the point of sale.

Q6. All ingredients derived fully or partly from GM crops or processes needs to be labelled. This includes refined products such as oils, sugars, starches, honey, additives and enzymes, and animal products derived fully or partly from GM feed, which currently escape labelling. GM animal feed needs to be labelled. This is "process-based" labelling. I reject suggestions that GM food becomes 'normal unlabelled food', with our usual food being labelled instead as "GM free".

Q13. There have been too few independent studies to feel confident in the safety of GM foods. In fact Doctors specialising in Environmental Medicine believe they have found a link between GM food consumption and illness(1). They state "several animal studies indicate serious health risks associated with GM food consumption". They include: allergy; gastrointestinal, liver and kidney changes; immune dysregulation; dysregulation of insulin and cholesterol response; accelerated ageing and reduced fertility (1). GM is not just a consumer concern that doesn't need labelling. GM food is not the same as non-GM food.

Q19. I want full GM process-based food labelling irrespective of how this may "inhibit" the development of new technologies. If new technologies such as GM, nanotechnology and irradiation can only be successful if they are hidden, unlabelled in our food, we should be very suspicious.

REFERENCES:

1.  American Academy of Environmental Medicine (2008). Genetically Modified Foods; http://www.aaemonline.org/gmopost.html