Green MEPs renew attack on GM foods

The two Irish Green Party MEPs have renewed their attack on the sale and production of genetically modified foods.

This follows the decision, announced yesterday, by an international group of scientists to support a UK researcher forced to retire after highlighting possible health dangers from GM foods.

The work by Dr Arpad Pusztai, formerly of the Rowett Research Institute in Aberdeen, found that rats fed on GM potatoes suffered weakened immune systems.

Ms Patricia McKenna said the UK research findings were extremely disturbing and confirmed that people were being used as human guinea pigs.

She called for all foods containing genetically modified organisms to be removed from supermarket shelves.

Ms Nuala Ahern demanded an immediate moratorium on growing GM crops and on importing foods containing GM foodstuffs. "These new gene foods have to be regulated like new drugs and should have to go through full clinical trials," she said yesterday.

The scientists called for the reinstatement of Dr Pusztai and funding for extensive research into his results. Dr Pusztai was suspended last August from the Rowett Institute and forced into early retirement after appearing on the Granada Television World in Action programme.

One scientist backing Dr Pusztai, Dr Stanley Ewen, a senior pathologist at Aberdeen University medical school, said he had been treated unfairly and his findings should be reinstated.

Dr Ewen has also repeated some of Dr Pusztai's work by feeding the same lectin-rich potatoes to rats. He found the rats suffered from enlarged stomach walls after 10 days of feeding trials.

Dr Ronald Finn, past president of the British Society of Allergy and Environmental Medicine and another supporter of Dr Pusztai, said: "You can imagine a doomsday scenario. If the immune system of the population was weakened, then the mortality would be increased many, many times."

The Rowett Institute said Dr Pusztai had released "misleading information" on the television programme. The head of the institute, Prof Philip James, who ordered Dr Pusztai's suspension, said he had been suspended under "standard, routine procedures" and that he (Dr James) had always been a "strong supporter" of his research work.

The Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, said yesterday it would be "inappropriate and undesirable" to take action which might "prejudge the consultative process" under way on GMO trials.