ALISON JOHNSTONE WELCOMES CHANCE TO DEBATE "HIDDEN GM" FOODS
Green MSP Alison Johnstone is welcoming confirmation from the Scottish Government that it intends to hold a debate in parliament on food labelling, amid growing concerns about GM materials hidden in everyday foods.
Alison recently tabled a motion in parliament highlighting the fact that major supermarkets have scrapped policies that prevented animals fed on genetically-modified crops reaching the shelves.
In a parliamentary answer to Alison received today (5 June) the environment minister admits the issue is not covered by labelling regulations, which means customers have no idea if the products they're buying have been fed on GM feeds.
Alison Johnstone, Green MSP for Lothian and food spokesperson for the Scottish Greens, said:
"While a debate on labelling is welcome it's a shame it won't happen till September at the earliest. This is an important consumer issue; there is increasing interest in where our food comes from and what it contains.
"A recent Food Standards Agency survey found 67 per cent of consumers want meat, eggs and dairy labelled to show whether they come from animals fed on GM feed. I urge the Scottish Government to challenge the retailers to improve their labelling so that we can at least choose not to buy these products."