CONSUMERS AT RISK FROM GENETICALLY MODIFIED MORRISONS

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Sun 17th Sep 2006

Responding to revelations today that GM contaminated rice has been found on sale in Morrisons, NE Lib Dem Euro MP Fiona Hall said:

"This is serious news because it is clear that the system put in place to protect consumers is not working. Thousands of consumers in the North East are now at risk.

"The GM strain of rice found in Morrisons has not been authorised for consumption in the EU, nor indeed anywhere in the world.

"The European Commission acted swiftly to prevent any more contaminated rice entering the EU. But it is up to national governments to protect consumers from rice that is already in the country and ministers have failed to do that.

"Even though the Commission advised the Government to carry out controls on products already on the shelf, the Food Standards Agency has denied that there is a health and safety issue.

"This is astonishingly negligent given that this contamination is from an experimental strain that hasn't been subjected to any safety tests. What has happened to the precautionary principle?"