Environment Minister Amy Adams has told Hawke’s Bay growers they already have the ability to market their produce as free of genetically modified organisms and she doesn’t support a law change to make the region an official GM-free zone.
Local growers lobby group Pure Hawke’s Bay challenged Ms Adams on the issue when she visited the region yesterday. They took the opportunity to question her at a public meeting in Clive after placing a full-page advertisement in yesterday’s Hawke’s Bay Today. The ad, in the form of an open letter to the minister, said being able to market the $1 billion of annual produce as GM-free was an “essential component of our competitive advantage”.
“The region can market itself as GE-free now. The reality is there are no GM-produced or released plants or animals in New Zealand. We are GE-free in that respect,” she said. “The issue is really around whether it’s sensible and appropriate for councils to be setting up their own rules or whether these things should be nationally regulated.”
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