Opponents to genetically modified organisms celebrated a moral victory last month as an agricultural area of Victoria Island agreed to keep out some GMOs.
The Cowichan Valley Regional District has declared the valley to be “trans-species GMO-free.” That means GMO crops can be grown as long as they have no genetic material from animals, said Ruth Fenner, who is leading the anti-GMO forces in the valley.
Fenner was also active in the GMO debate at last month’s annual meeting of the Federated Women’s Institutes of Canada.
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The WI membership agreed to ask the federal government to make labeling mandatory for food products containing genetically altered ingredients.
Fenner and others from the South Vancouver Island District WI have been promoting the need for testing and labeling of GMO products.
Their opposition is based on the concept that genes are being inserted into food and people don’t know about it when they buy groceries. They use the example of fish genes inserted in tomatoes to build resistance to frost as an example of negative trans-species alteration.
The British Columbia valley’s board will be writing to Ottawa asking for mandatory labeling. It is publicizing its GMO-free status and will promote the purchase of local food and organic produce.
Wants provincial backing
Fenner said the valley’s lawyer is also “looking at putting teeth” in the GMO ban since the group has no legal authority to stop GM crops from being grown or GM food from being sold. She said her committee hopes to meet this fall with B.C. agriculture minister Corky Evans to ask that the GMO ban be extended across the province.
Fenner said the Cowichan area between Victoria and Nanaimo produces dairy cattle, sheep, alpacas, llamas, apples, wine grapes and greenhouse produce. The only GM crops grown are some varieties of corn.
Fenner’s group has sent anti-GMO petitions to all provincial WI offices. She said there has been a lot of interest from Manitoba, but not in Saskatchewan or Alberta.
