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Written question asked by Michael Meacher (Labour) on Thursday, 7 July 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 11 July 2005. It was answered by Caroline Flint (Labour) on Thursday, 14 July 2005 on behalf of the Department of Health.

GM Crops

Question
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action the UK Government have taken (a) to detect animal feed shipments contaminated with the unapproved BX10 variety of GM maize, (b) to prevent such illegal shipments from reaching the UK and (c) to train and equip UK port authorities to detect unapproved GM contaminants in food and feed imports.
Answer

I have been asked to reply.The detection method and reference material which was provided by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre to allow testing by member states has been forwarded to public analyst laboratories in the United Kingdom which will carry out testing for local authorities. To date, two local authorities have reported negative results for analysis carried out on imports for Btl0.The requirement for certification of United States of America imports is in place, following the introduction of national regulations setting out the necessary enforcement powers at the end of April. Before this date, enforcement bodies were able to use general food safety powers to detain imports of the relevant products. consignments were released when the importer provided evidence that Btl0 was not present.UK enforcement officers authorised to inspect, detain or seize food or feed are required to have specific qualifications and training. General enforcement guidance on the control of imported food and feed and, specific advice on the control of unapproved Btl0 genetically modified contamination has also been issued by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) to the relevant enforcement authorities. Analysis and detection of GM contamination would be carried out by the public analyst or agricultural analyst formally appointed by the local enforcement authority.The FSA will carry out its own surveillance work and plans for this are currently being developed. The outcome of this work will be used to inform the Commission's review of this new requirement in October.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
436 c1169-70W;436 c1169-70W; 11811
Session
2005-06
Subjects
Genetically modified organisms Maize