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EARTH ACTION 81 Prince Street Charlottetown PEI C1A 4R3 Tel: 902-621-0719 Email: slabchuk@isn.net MEDIA RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 13, 1999 Government Investment in Biotechnology Squanders Tax Dollars Charlottetown - Continued investment of taxpayers' dollars in Solanum, a provincial government " arms length" corporation that promotes the growing and marketing of genetically-modified (GM) potatoes, is senseless and irresponsible, says Earth Action spokesperson Sharon Labchuk. "Europe's biggest bank, Deutsche Bank, has advised several thousand of the world's largest investors to sell their shares in leading companies, like Monsanto, involved in the development of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) because consumers don't want to buy their products," says Labchuk. "Monsanto, Solanum and the PEI Department of Agriculture and Forestry are partners in a venture to promote growing and exporting GM potatoes. There are now 5,000 acres of GM potatoes grown on PEI." Deutsche Bank's first research report, dated May 21 and entitled GMOs Are Dead, said: "We predict GMOs, once perceived as a bull case for this sector, will now be perceived as a pariah." "The message is a scary one - increasingly, GMOs are, or in our opinion, becoming a liability to farmers," it adds. The bank's latest report, published in July under the heading Ag Biotech: Thanks But No Thanks, says the concerns of European consumers are real and GMOs could become an "earnings nightmare" for Monsanto." Since the report was circulated to investors, shares in companies named have fallen against a rising trend in stock markets. "Europeans have soundly rejected GM foods. Some large British supermarket chains refuse to carry GM foods and citizens are ripping plants out of the ground. Farmers and ordinary citizens in Britain, France, India and other countries are boycotting and destroying GM crops," says Labchuk. "On this side of the ocean, the US government and the biotech industry are preparing for a consumer backlash. US agriculture secretary Dan Glickman warned farmers that they could be left with unwanted crops, and that small farmers could become "serfs on the land". The writing is on the wall. People don't want to eat genetically modified food, we don't want mega-corporations controlling the food system, and we aren't prepared to accept the risks to human health and the environment that these corporations would force upon us in the name of profit." Labchuk points out the province's web site says: The government of Prince Edward Island has identified life sciences, and in particular biotechnology, as a priority sector for future economic development. "Our advice to government is wake up and pay attention to what's happening to the biotechnology industry in the rest of the world. Spending tax dollars on Solanum and other misguided GMO promotions is just pouring money down the drain," she says. "The organic sector is growing by leaps and bounds. This is where we should be investing our efforts." - 30 - Contact: Sharon Labchuk 902-621-0719 ******************************** Sharon Labchuk Earth Action 81 Prince Street Charlottetown, PEI C1A 4R3 Phone: 902-368-7337 / 621-0719 Fax: 902-621-0719 slabchuk@isn.net -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- You received this because you are subscribed to "sust-mar", the Sustainable Maritimes mailing list. To unsubscribe, send email to <majordomo@chebucto.ns.ca> with "unsubscribe sust-mar" (without quotes) as the body of your message. To post a message to sust-mar subscribers, send it to <sust-mar@chebucto.ns.ca> Posts that are off-topic or excessive length (10K) will be rejected. For help contact <sust-mar-owner@chebucto.ns.ca>
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