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Going against the grain
20 Feb 2004
The NSW Government may be poised to give the go-ahead to Australia's first genetically modified food crop. The NSW Advisory Council met yesterday and will meet again today to consider Bayer CropScience/Monsanto's application to plant test fields of 5,000 hectares of GM canola in NSW and Victoria.
The Network of Concerned Farmers sees this trial as a "backdoor commercial release" of GM canola. The network's Julie Newman says grain growers could lose lucrative markets over the next three-four years, as the introduction of GM canola could destroy both canola and the much larger wheat markets.
Twynam Agricultural Group, which grows GM cotton, soya bean and corn, also believes GM canola puts Australia's wheat markets at risk. Twynam's Johnny Kahlbetzer said there's enormous consumer resistance to GM canola and wheat.
While the proposal for the trial only relates to GM canola, contamination remains a real issue for wheat farmers, as wheat is usually planted in rotation on the same fields used for canola production.
Australian Financial Review, 20/2/04.
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