May 20 2000 / The Ottawa Citizen / Pauline Tam
Canada, according to this story, stands to lose key export markets for grain if it does not devise a reliable system to separate genetically modified crops from conventionally bred varieties, and verify their purity.
The warning from environmentalists grew more intense this week following revelations that genetically modified canola from Canada was accidentally mixed with conventional stock, and illegally planted in four European countries.
Mark Winfield, research director of the Canadian Institute for Environmental Law and Policy, a Toronto-based think tank was quoted as saying, "I think we're reaching a point in the marketplace where it's becoming essential to segregate" genetically modified crops from conventional varieties. Similar calls have come from within the country's grain industry. Last fall, the Canadian Wheat Board made it clear it is time for the agricultural sector to start looking at ways to segregate genetically modified crops to satisfy the demands of export markets.
Mr. Winfield said the most logical international forum to negotiate a segregation and verification system is the United Nations-sponsored Biosafety Protocol. However, the global treaty regulating the trade and handling of genetically modified organisms is not yet in place and the lengthy process of ratifying the agreement has just begun.
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