Supporters of the biotechnology industry have played down the Prince of Wale’s vociferous attack on genetically modified crops as out of touch with current legislation.
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With his Duchy Originals range of organic foods, the Prince has a vested interest in the GM debate and has been accused of being a mouthpiece for the organic lobby. The Prince called Tuesday for biotech firms to be made “liable” for any damage their crops caused.
However, Stephen Smith, chairman of the Agricultural Biotechnology Council, said yesterday that under existing legislation his members, which include major GM crop developers such as Monsanto, Aventis and Syngenta, would be fully liable for any of their products that caused damage, whether they were GM or not, and as such there needed to be no specific distinction for genetically modified products.
But Adrian Bebb, GM campaigner at Friends of the Earth, said the Prince’s comments were “spot on the ball because the existing legislation is inadequate”.
Bebb added: “Liability is a very unsure issue because we do not know the long term impact of GM on the environment. There are so many interests potentially at risk, including farmers, beekeepers and conservationists, that it would be very difficult to seek full legal redress.”
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