Health officials point to GM food labelling
Government health officials yesterday gave the strongest indication yet they may bring in mandatory labelling of genetically modified (GM) foods.
But the Health Department said it had first to consult international health authorities, such as those at the United Nations, and could not commit to a specific time-frame.
'We will propose regulatory control, including labelling of GM food, when appropriate,' an official said.
The news came as Greenpeace released the results of tests on 10 food products, saying three popular soya items were made from genetically modified beans from the United States.
It named Pak Fook Fresh Soya Milk, Pak Fook Beancurd Dessert and Vitasoy Fresh Soya Milk, available at Wellcome and ParknShop. The tests, conducted at the Federal Environment Agency of Austria and sponsored by Greenpeace, found they contained GM soya beans called Roundup Ready, produced in the US.
'Consumers should be informed and therefore labelling is a must,' Greenpeace campaigner Lo Sze-ping said.
'The Government should act and bring in a labelling system soon.' Greenpeace wants all GM foods banned worldwide in the long run, but Mr Lo said there was no scientific evidence that the GM soya beans and GM foods in general were harmful.
Last night, Vitasoy denied it used any GM ingredients. 'Soya beans used by the company in the processing of its products are derived from non-genetically modified organism sources,' a statement said. Vitasoy is confident its soya beans are non-GM.' Pak Fook did not return calls yesterday.
Both Wellcome and ParknShop said they were in favour of a labelling system, but would sell the three products because there was no evidence they were unsafe.
GM researcher and Chinese University biology professor Samuel Sun Sai-ming warned that prejudices against GM foods and bio-technology could undermine vital and beneficial research.
