December 21, 1999
AP
LONDON - Genetically modified food has been banned from the staff
cafeteria at Monsanto Co.'s UK headquarters by the company's own
caterer, GM food giant Monsanto confirmed Tuesday.
Granada Food Services, whose customers include Monsanto's High
Wycombe office near London, recently told clients it would not supply
food containing GM soya and GM maize due to customer concerns.
In a statement to clients, Granada said the move was designed "to
ensure that you, the customer, can feel confident in the food we
serve."
Genetic engineering involves splicing a single gene from one organism
to another. GM products, including Monsanto's genetically engineered
corn, have recently met with safety concerns in parts of Europe
and Asia.
In October, the European Union adopted new marketing rules requiring
companies to label food as genetically modified if more than one
percent of the product contains GM organisms. Granada's statement
said the ban also brings the company into compliance with the new
regulations.
Monsanto played down the staff cafeteria policy, and denied it
was an embarrassment to have a GM food ban at the head office of
a company manufacturing GM crop seeds.
"We believe in choice. At our Cambridge restaurant the notice
says some products may contain genetically modified organisms because
our staff are happy to eat foods sprayed with fewer chemicals,"
said Tony Combes, Monsanto's director of corporate affairs.
Combes also pointed out that Granada's GM policy was a blanket
ban covering all of its customers and did not target Monsanto specifically.
"It has nothing to do with us really," said Combes. Opponents
of GM food said they believe the ban showed a lack of confidence
in Monsanto, however.
"The public has made its concerns about GM ingredients very
clear. Now it appears that even Monsanto's own catering firm has
no confidence in this new technology," said Adrian Bebb, food
campaigner at Friends of the Earth.
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