Gmo And Mr Toxic At It Again; Warning!

[ayakiawe]

sorry about the format

> From: Melanie & Colehour Bondera

<[email protected]>

> Date: September 4, 2004 7:15:01 AM HST

> To: gefreehawaii <[email protected]>

> Subject: [gefreehi] GM papaya: Importers cancel

orders fearing

> contamination

> Reply-To: [email protected]

>

>

>

> GMO CONCERNS: Europeans shun Thai papaya

>

http://nationmultimedia.com/page.news.php3...20149&usrsess=1

> THE NATION, Sep 3, 2004

> Importers cancel orders fearing contamination

>

> Several European Union importers this week

stopped importing canned

> fruit

> products containing papaya from Thailand

fearing possible

> contamination from

> genetically modified (GM) papaya, a Thai

exporter said.

>

> The "stop" order was received on Wednesday by a

major Thai

> manufacturer, from

> one of its main customers in a European

country, Germany according to

> one

> source. The company has been importing canned

fruit salad and fruit

> cocktail

> products from the Thai company for years, said

Wanlop Phichphongsa,

> managing

> director of Top Organic Products and Supplies

Co and a member of Thai

> Organic

> Trader.

>

> Another Thai company received a similar notice

from a customer in

> France,

> said another source. But this case has yet to

be officially confirmed.

>

> "The reason is clear: It is the fear of GM

papaya contamination," he

> said

> about the first case. "The reaction has been a

lot faster than we

> would have

> imagined, faster than the bird flu impact."

>

> He spoke on the condition the exporter would

not be identified |to

> avoid

> further damage to its |business, Wanlop said.

>

> The EU importer had asked for a GM-free

certificate for the papaya the

> company uses, Wanlop said.

>

> "The policy's impact was felt immediately,

leaving no time to

> prepare," he

> said.

>

> "The Thai manufacturer tried to explain to its

customer that Thailand

> has no

> policy to grow and trade GM papaya and sent

them copies of

> English-language

>

> news report about this week's Cabinet

resolution to support the

> explanation.

> But it failed. The importer still insisted on

sticking to its stop

> order."

>

> Wanlop said it is clear the order was due to

two factors; the recent

> resolution of the National Biotechnology Policy

Commission that gave

> the

> green light for GM crops and the lack of

credibility of Thai

> authorities.

> They have denied leakage from some GM papaya

experiments despite

> results of

>

> testing at farmers' fields indicating

otherwise.

>

> He called on the government to order an

investigation into the leakage

> of GM

> contaminated papaya into farmers' orchards in

Khon Kaen and nearby

> provinces.

>

> "There should be some independent committee

that could gain trust from

> foreign importers to conduct the

investigation," he said.

>

> Thai ambassadors and commerce offices abroad

need to communicate

> Thailand's

>

> GM-free crop policy to importers in order to

prevent further damage to

> Thai

>

> exports, he said.

>

> Annually, canned fruit-salad products generate

about Bt1 billion in

> export

> revenues to the Kingdom.

>

> Kamol Sukin, Sirinart Sirisunthorn

>

> THE NATION

>

>

> German food distributor cancels order

>

> Contamination from GMO papaya feared

>

> KULTIDA SAMABUDDHI

>

> A well-known German food distributor has banned

fruit cocktail

> products from

> a Thai exporter for fear the products contain

genetically-modified

> papaya.

>

> The German importer has stopped ordering canned

fruit cocktail from a

> Chiang

> Mai-based processed fruits exporter following a

report of the spread

> of GM

> papaya from the Agriculture Department's Khon

Kaen research station to

> local

> farms, said Soontorn Sritawee, vice-president

of River Kwai

> International

> Food Industry, a key member of the Thai Organic

Alliance Society.

>

> The Thai exporter and German importer were not

named.

>

> ''It is a shocking move for exporters. We did

not expect that the ban

> would

>

> be imposed this fast,'' said Mr Soontorn.

>

> Mr Soontorn said he was informed by the company

on Wednesday that its

> fruit

>

> cocktail shipment, which contains papaya,

pineapple and guava, would be

> banned indefinitely.

>

> The importer demanded the company prove the

papayas were grown from

> GM-free

>

> seeds.

>

> He said the company has switched to buying

papayas from the southern

> provinces pending an investigation of the GM

papaya scandal in Khon

> Kaen.

>

> Food exporters have confronted a series of

trade obstacles since GMO

> contamination in local farms was publicised,

said Mr Soontorn,

> including a

> GM-free labelling requirement in South Africa

on Thai rice and an

> order to

> delay shipments of Thai papaya products by

Carrefour superstore in

> France.

>

> Meanwhile, the Thai Organic Alliance Society, a

group of organic food

> exporters that opposes genetically-engineered

food technology, pressed

> the

> government and the Commerce Ministry to clarify

the Thai GMO policy for

> importers.

>

> ''Please urgently inform them that no

commercial plantation of GM

> crops was

>

> allowed here,'' the group said in a press

release.

>

> The exporters also demanded the government

establish a neutral

> committee to

>

> investigate the GM papaya scandal in Khon Kaen,

saying that the

> department's

> sluggishness in looking into the case had

generated mistrust among

> importers.

>

> Agriculture Department director-general Chakan

Saengraksawong said all

> means

> would be used to regain the trust of importers.

He said technical

> officers

> would be dispatched to explain to the European

Commission that Thai

> farm

> products were free of GMOs.

>

> The department will also invite European

importers to inspect the

> department's GM papaya field trials to prove

that the experiment was

> conducted under strict biosafety control

measures, he added.

>

> Papaya has been exported mainly as fruit

cocktail, dehydrated papaya,

> and

> canned papaya in syrup. Thailand exports about

1,000 shipping

> containers,

> worth about one bil

>

> GMO FEARS: 'Papayas are not tainted'

>

> Published on Sep 4, 2004

>

>

> Ministry denies local varieties contaminated

during field trials

>

> The Agriculture Department yesterday denied

that papayas destined for

> European

> markets and elsewhere were genetically modified

crops.

>

> "Exporters can apply for a department

certificate to prove the papayas

> have not

> been contaminated," said department director

general Chakarn

> Saengruksawong.

>

> Six exporters have sought |and received such

certificates |for their

> papaya

> exports to Poland and the Netherlands, he said.

>

> Chakarn said his department's field tests with

genetically modified

> (GM) papayas

> had not contaminated local crops and that

Thailand had not condoned

> the planting

> of GM crops.

>

> "I can speak with authority that Thailand has

not produced GM papayas

> or GM

> crops of any kind. Environmental groups, such

as Greenpeace, are

> wel-come to

> verify my statement," he said.

>

> He warned that opponents of GM crops should not

make |wild accusations

> about

> papaya contamination without |checking.

>

> Greenpeace Southeast Asia took up Chakarn's

challenge and called on the

> authorities to stop skirting around the issue

of GM papayas and begin

> to destroy

> and clean up contaminated crops.

>

> "Test results from independent laboratories in

Hong Kong show that

> some GM

> papayas on the market are of the Kaek Dam Tha

Phra strain, which is

> available

> only through the research station run by the

Agriculture Department in

> Khon

> Kaen," Greenpeace executive director Jiragorn

Gajaseni said.

>

> The test results prove field trials of GM

papayas had contaminated

> local crops,

> she said.

>

> The contamination is a time bomb that could

destroy the agricultural

> industry if

> authorities failed to deal with it quickly,

Jiragorn said.

>

> Organic agriculture advocate Withoon Panyakul

urged the authorities to

> present

> proof that papaya seeds distributed to farmers

were not contaminated.

>

> "Lingering doubts about Thai GM papayas can be

dispelled quickly if

> authorities

> rush to destroy suspicious papaya crops," he

said, drawing an analogy

> to the

> culling of millions of chickens to contain the

spread of avian flu.

>

> Papaya farmer Somkuan Sriwongchotisakul said

she was willing to

> destroy her

> crops in Khon Kaen's Phon district if

authorities could prove the

> contamination.

>

> Greenpeace said that the papaya samples from

Somkuan's plot were GM

> papayas.

>

> Somkuan said if her papayas were contaminated,

she should receive

> compensation

> from the authorities as her seeds came from a

government research

> station.

[ayakiawe]

Toxin's pandora's box cont

Sorry about the format again!

Comment: UNDEFINED: Comment Reuters, 31.08.2004

Thai

> cabinet overturns GMO approval 31 Aug 2004

09:48:13 GMT

> Source: Reuters (Adds activist comment) By

Trirat

> Puttajanyawong BANGKOK, Aug 31 (Reuters) -

>

> Thailand's

> cabinet decided on Tuesday to keep a three-year

ban on

> planting crops using genetically modified

organisms (GMO),

> overturning a decision by a panel chaired by

Prime Minister

> Thaksin Shinawatra. Instead, it decided to set

up a panel

> to hear the arguments for and against GMO crops

from state

> agencies and biotech lecturers at all Thai

universities,

> Science Minister Korn Dabbaransi told

reporters. "We will

> have academics from all universities to hear

their view on

> three options -- 1) to promote GMOs freely in

Thailand, 2)

> to allow the co-existence of GM and non-GM

crops, or 3) to

> ban GMOs completely," Korn said after the

weekly cabinet

> meeting. Tuesday's decision reversed one made

by Thaksin's

> committee only little more than a week ago to

allow

> open-field trials alongside non-GMO plants. The

following

> day, Thaksin used part of his weekly radio

address to laud

> Thailand as a country technologically capable

of developing

> GMOs. "If we don't start now, we will miss this

scientific

> train and lose out in the world," he said. The

debate on

> biotech grains has intensified worldwide, with

advocates

> saying they could lead to a more secure future

for food,

> while opponents say they could produce new

toxins and

> allergens, affecting the health of consumers.

Following

> Thaksin's decision, anti-GMO activists,

including Greenpeace

> and organic food growers, went out on the

streets to urge

> the government to reverse its decision, fearing

the

> country's organic food export industry would be

hit hard.

>

> Anti-GMO advocates said by adopting open

field trials,

> Thailand was heading towards promoting GMOs

freely as the

> government had no measures to prevent GM crops

from

> contaminating non-GMO crops. Korn said the

government would

> not change its GMO policy until a law on

biotechnology had

> been passed. Planting of GM crops is now done

in government

> laboratories for papayas, chillies and

eggplants, while

> imports of genetically modified soybeans and

maize for

> animal feedstock and other commercial uses are

legal,

> officials said. A consumer group reacted warily

to the

> cabinet decision and urged the government to

allow anti-GMO

> activists to take part in the drafting process

of a new law

> on biotechnology. "We hope this government

didn't keep the

> ban because they were afraid of losing their

popularity

> ahead of the general election," said Sairung

Thongplon of

> the Confederation of Consumers' Organisations.

"We hope it

> will not lift the ban after the elections" due

by the end of

> March. (Additional reporting by Sasithorn

Simaporn)

> [Entered August 31, 2004]

>

> Thailand backs down over GMO crop trials after

public outcry

>

> BANGKOK (AFP) Sep 01, 2004

> The Thai government has halted plans for

open-field trials of

> genetically

> modified crops in a move dismissed by activists

Wednesday as a

> short-term

> tactical ploy in the face of public protest.

> Officials will begin a new study to decide if

the trials should be

> delayed or

> even abandoned after the cabinet backed down

from relaxing

> three-year-old

> regulations governing the crops.

>

> Fierce criticism of the trials has been led by

environmental group

> Greenpeace

> which said the government had rushed into a

decision that threatened

> the health

> of the Thai people.

>

> The government said public opposition had

contributed to its decision

> and

> accepted that genetically modified organisms

(GMOs) remained a

> debatable issue

> across the world.

>

> "The Prime Minister said there should be a

study about GMO because if

> the

> government rushes to make a decision, it may

lead people to think the

> government

> supports GMOs," government spokesman Jakrapob

Penkair told AFP. "We

> will do the

> study on paper, not by testing."

>

> Greenpeace said Wednesday that the government

was still determined to

> push ahead

> with allowing GMO crops in Thailand.

>

> It claims that a planned government campaign

aimed at "improving public

> understanding" would be used to persuade a

sceptical public to embrace

> the idea

> of GMOs.

>

> Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been

accused of bowing to

> pressure from US

> corporate giants like Monsanto, which is

pushing to test GM corn

> strains, to

> reverse a ban on trials.

>

> Opponents said the US government had insisted

that Thailand grant

> intellectual

> property protection for GMOs before they reach

an agreement on free

> trade.

>

> Thaksin Wednesday dismissed suggestions that

his earlier backing for

> open-field

> trials was linked to US pressure.

>

> But he remained bullish over the prospects for

GM crops in Thailand.

> "The

> concern over GMO testing outside the lab being

dangerous for other

> products is

> an overreaction," he told reporters. "Thais

have limited information

> about GMO

> testing.

>

> "The study will be carry on until we can find a

compromise."

>

> The cabinet in 2001 banned GMO field trials.

Current law forbids the

> public sale

> of GMO seeds and requires products containing

more than five percent

> of a

> genetically modified ingredient to be clearly

labelled.

>

> Controlled experiments are allowed but

Greenpeace claimed government

> trials of

> GM papaya contaminated a non-GM farmer's field

60 kilometres (37

> miles) from the

> site.

>

> Varoonvarn Svangsopakul, from Greenpeace

Southeast Asia, said the

> climbdown was

> only a "partial victory" for opponents of GMOs.

>

> "It's not over yet. The government agencies who

support GMOs will try

> hard to

> put it back on the agenda," he said.

>

> "I think the government is just buying time.

They will launch a series

> of

> advertisements until the people accept the

idea."

>

> The United States is the world's biggest GMO

producer but has

> struggled to

> persuade other nations to accept the products.

>

> However in Asia, the Philippines and China

already have huge

> plantations

> producing GM crops such as corn and cotton.

[Up2U]

Rather than post these impossible to read clips, why not paste the links - then we can read the thread quickly and easily.

[plachon]

Yes, the links would probably be better Aya, but thanks for posting this stuff nevertheless. Perhaps it should be in News clippings section too.

It shows once again that Toxin acts without thinking things through, putting the welfare of the many behind the economic interests of a narrow few. As a result of his haste to pander to the multi-national GMO promoting corporations, he has lost business for many farmers and food exporters to the GM-sensitive European market, which anyone with an ounce of common sense could have predicted beforehand. Like the bird-flu handling fiasco , it gives the whole agricultural sector in Thailand a bad name, through no real fault of its own. The blame should lie with a handful of politicians and their close business associates, who are selling this country out for their own personal gain.

[Ned]

Last week I bought a papaya at the market in Chiang Mai. The thing didn't have any seeds. Never come across a papaya without seeds before. Is this the sign of a GM papaya? Yes.....I did end up eating the bastard.

[plachon]

Last week I bought a papaya at the market in Chiang Mai. The thing didn't have any seeds. Never come across a papaya without seeds before. Is this the sign of a GM papaya? Yes.....I did end up eating the bastard.

No, don't worry you won't grow an extra head or &lt;deleted&gt; as a result, it's just sterile. Quite common with papayas - local equivalent of a Jaffa orange or Cherbobyl victim.

[marquess]

When GMO's become as abundant and free as what is supplied by Mother Nature, then I might believe... that the motivation is not cash, but for the good of all. Until then keep them.

[Nemesis]

"Central to our (United States) foreign policy has been the active attempt to deprive governments and peoples of the independence that comes from self-sufficiency in the production of food. I’ve believed for many years that a country that can’t produce food for its own people can never really be free." Ramsey Clark, former US Attorney General

Apparently, according to Clark, messing up food production, supply and the food chain of other countries has been a goal of US foreign policy for years.

The more I learn of my own government's policies, the more I think doing the opposite of what the US government advocates would be the wisest choice almost without exception.

[plachon]

With words like that, Ramsey Clark obviously was never cut out to become a politician......he'd just spilled the beans on one of the core pillars of US post-war (2nd WW) expansionism. If you can control the world's food supply, you are nine tenths to controlling the world - Maslow's heirarchy of needs and all that. The only thing that stands in the way of this goal is the continued "intransigence" of certain "third world" countries to protect their small farmers from the rapacious habits of the likes of Cargill, Monsanto, etc., who make sure the US populace get their daily dose of GMO's, quite unbeknown to the majority of them. It makes me wonder if they don't splice a gene for overseas aggression and fear of "others" into that GM maize you guys eat for breakfast each day.