Organic news archive: September 2004
Pesticides were discovered in a quarter of all food tested in Britain last year, according to the Pesticide Residue Committee. More than 4,000 food samples were analysed: fruit and veg were the worst, with a third having traces of chemicals. Of 301 apples checked, 213 contained pesticides. Bread is also one of the worst offenders, with two thirds of loaves affected. The Soil Association's Martin Cottingham says: "These results are alarming. They suggest that one in four of the foods we buy are likely to contain traces of hazardous chemicals. The Government has failed to produce an effective pesticides reduction strategy as it is required to do by European Union rules." (The Sun; The Times; Daily Express; Daily Telegraph - 27/9/04)
Cookery would be included in the national curriculum and a 30% organic target set for school meals under plans unveiled by the Liberal Democrats. Food spokeswoman, Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer said: "Food policy should be a powerful force for individual health and social and environmental well being." Healthy eating habits must begin in childhood, she stressed. Calls for a single cabinet minister to take responsibility for national food policy were backed, along with targets for school meals of 30% organic, 50% locally sourced and 75% unprocessed food. (Daily Mail � 23/9/04)
Adverts for junk food could become a thing of the past. Almost a third of MPs support a total ban on such ads in a bid to beat the childhood obesity epidemic. It means the Children's Food Bill, which aims to encourage children to eat more healthily, is one step closer to becoming law. The Bill will set standards for school meals including limits on sugar and salt content. (The Sun � 23/9/04)
Genetically modified crops will be banned from being grown on land owned by Bradford Council. And members have reinforced their commitment to a GM-free policy on all its goods and services. Members of the two biggest parties backed a Green group motion, slightly amended by the Conservatives, demanding that the Council's executive group adopts the two positions as policy and also considers appealing against any applications for licences to grow GM plants. (Bradford Telegraph and Argus � 23/9/04)
Children's Minister, Margaret Hodge has contradicted the Government's tough stance against childhood obesity by including a competition corner on her constituency report where the winner receives a book of vouchers for McDonald's. (The Independent � 24/9/04)
At a meeting organised by the Wessex Organic Movement Dr Vyvyan Howard of Liverpool University spoke about the link over time of increased 'body burdens' of chemicals including pesticides. Children and foetuses are particularly vulnerable. Dr Howard showed how eating organic food can reduce the risk of exposure. His message was to 'eat organic if we want to reduce our lifetime exposure to these dangerous substances'. His findings are reinforced by the results of a new study unveiled at the first International Scientific Conference on Childhood Leukaemia. The transfer of pesticides in the bloodstream of the mother across the placenta could affect the immune system of the child and be linked with increasing incidences of leukaemia in children.
British farmers will play a key role in the production of bio-diesel as a result of a new alliance it is claimed. Global Commodities UK the countries largest manufacturer of bio-diesel, at 12 million litres per year, and Centaur Grain a large grain marketing organisation have entered into an alliance. This provides an opportunity for UK farmers to grow oilseed rape for bio-diesel.
Pollen from a genetically modified grass has been shown to travel up to 21km away from the site where it was originally planted. This may be the longest recorded distance travelled by any GM pollen, US researchers have claimed. They tracked the spread of genes from creeping bentgrass engineered to resist popular herbicides and which could be used on golf-course putting greens. The researchers found that plants growing within about 2km of the test plot were extensively contaminated with genes from the GM grasses. But the team also found evidence of transgenic seed formation up to 21km downwind in potted sentinels and up to 14km away in wild plants. Former environment minister Michael Meacher said the research was "extremely significant". He added: "What this means is that Britain is too small an island to ever grow GM crops. We would need to have exclusion-zones of around 12 miles for every farm. It just isn't practical." Details appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
(BBC News; The Evening Standard � 22/9/04)
Organic farmers have been warned to expect shortages of organic cereal and vegetable seed following poor August weather. The Soil Association is urging seed companies to keep their best-quality untreated conventional seed for organic farmers to use under derogation. (Western Daily Press � 21/9/04)
A total of £1.82 billion of taxpayers' money is missing, presumed lost, from Europe's farm subsidies programme,
Pesticides were discovered in a quarter of all food tested in Britain last year, according to the Pesticide Residue Committee. More than 4,000 food samples were analysed: fruit and veg were the worst, with a third having traces of chemicals. Of 301 apples checked, 213 contained pesticides. Bread is also one of the worst offenders, with two thirds of loaves affected. The Soil Association's Martin Cottingham says: "These results are alarming. They suggest that one in four of the foods we buy are likely to contain traces of hazardous chemicals. The Government has failed to produce an effective pesticides reduction strategy as it is required to do by European Union rules." (The Sun; The Times; Daily Express; Daily Telegraph - 27/9/04)
Cookery would be included in the national curriculum and a 30% organic target set for school meals under plans unveiled by the Liberal Democrats. Food spokeswoman, Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer said: "Food policy should be a powerful force for individual health and social and environmental well being." Healthy eating habits must begin in childhood, she stressed. Calls for a single cabinet minister to take responsibility for national food policy were backed, along with targets for school meals of 30% organic, 50% locally sourced and 75% unprocessed food. (Daily Mail � 23/9/04)
Adverts for junk food could become a thing of the past. Almost a third of MPs support a total ban on such ads in a bid to beat the childhood obesity epidemic. It means the Children's Food Bill, which aims to encourage children to eat more healthily, is one step closer to becoming law. The Bill will set standards for school meals including limits on sugar and salt content. (The Sun � 23/9/04)
Genetically modified crops will be banned from being grown on land owned by Bradford Council. And members have reinforced their commitment to a GM-free policy on all its goods and services. Members of the two biggest parties backed a Green group motion, slightly amended by the Conservatives, demanding that the Council's executive group adopts the two positions as policy and also considers appealing against any applications for licences to grow GM plants. (Bradford Telegraph and Argus � 23/9/04)
Children's Minister, Margaret Hodge has contradicted the Government's tough stance against childhood obesity by including a competition corner on her constituency report where the winner receives a book of vouchers for McDonald's. (The Independent � 24/9/04)
At a meeting organised by the Wessex Organic Movement Dr Vyvyan Howard of Liverpool University spoke about the link over time of increased 'body burdens' of chemicals including pesticides. Children and foetuses are particularly vulnerable. Dr Howard showed how eating organic food can reduce the risk of exposure. His message was to 'eat organic if we want to reduce our lifetime exposure to these dangerous substances'. His findings are reinforced by the results of a new study unveiled at the first International Scientific Conference on Childhood Leukaemia. The transfer of pesticides in the bloodstream of the mother across the placenta could affect the immune system of the child and be linked with increasing incidences of leukaemia in children.
British farmers will play a key role in the production of bio-diesel as a result of a new alliance it is claimed. Global Commodities UK the countries largest manufacturer of bio-diesel, at 12 million litres per year, and Centaur Grain a large grain marketing organisation have entered into an alliance. This provides an opportunity for UK farmers to grow oilseed rape for bio-diesel.
Pollen from a genetically modified grass has been shown to travel up to 21km away from the site where it was originally planted. This may be the longest recorded distance travelled by any GM pollen, US researchers have claimed. They tracked the spread of genes from creeping bentgrass engineered to resist popular herbicides and which could be used on golf-course putting greens. The researchers found that plants growing within about 2km of the test plot were extensively contaminated with genes from the GM grasses. But the team also found evidence of transgenic seed formation up to 21km downwind in potted sentinels and up to 14km away in wild plants. Former environment minister Michael Meacher said the research was "extremely significant". He added: "What this means is that Britain is too small an island to ever grow GM crops. We would need to have exclusion-zones of around 12 miles for every farm. It just isn't practical." Details appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (BBC News; The Evening Standard � 22/9/04)
Organic farmers have been warned to expect shortages of organic cereal and vegetable seed following poor August weather. The Soil Association is urging seed companies to keep their best-quality untreated conventional seed for organic farmers to use under derogation. (Western Daily Press � 21/9/04)
A total of £1.82 billion of taxpayers' money is missing, presumed lost, from Europe's farm subsidies programme,