Genetic Concern! Legal Challenge to Genetic Sugar Beet Trials
Press Release / Genetic Concern! 13may97

Justice Michael Morriarty in the High Court today granted an interim injunction to Ms. Clare Watson, a founder member of Genetic Concern!, preventing the Monsanto multi-national chemical company from planting genetically engineered sugar beet in Carlow. The injunction has been granted pending a judicial review of the EPA's decision to grant Monsanto a licence for Ireland's first ever field test of genetically engineered plants.  The sugar beet has been doctored with genes from a bacteria, a virus and a flower rendering it immune to Monsanto's own herbicide, Roundup. 

The EPA's decision has received much criticism both from the public, and from political parties, including Fianna Fail, Progressive Democrats, the Green Party and the Natural Law Party.  According to the EPA's own report on the application, the lack of public debate was the most common complaint raised by public objectors. Other complaints included fears of increased use of herbicide, gene pollution, gene transfer to weeds, as well as ethical, moral and social implications. 

"Most Irish people have no idea what genetic engineering is, much less know that the government are allowing multinational companies perform experiments here" said Quentin Gargan, spokesperson for Genetic Concern! "This whole issue has been sprung upon Irish citizens with no opportunity for public discussion, and a point blank refusal by the Government to allow a Dail debate. The public had only three weeks in which to inform themselves of the risks involved and to make submissions to the EPA".  

"We have to learn from our experience with BSE that science is entitled to change the safety status of any process as new information comes to hand. Already genetic engineering has thrown up surprises, such as happened with genetically engineered ingredients in tryptophane which resulted in 37 deaths and 1,500 permanent injuries. Until genetic engineering is fully understood, the E.P.A. should be adopting a highly precautionary approach.", he added. 

FURTHER INFORMATION (provided by Genetic Concern!) Many people think that bodies like the EPA conduct independent research and satisfy themselves that a process is safe. Nothing could be further from the truth. It is common policy for regulatory authorities such as the EPA to accept research information from companies who have a heavy invested interest in the outcome. In the U.S.A. for example, Monsanto presented the Environmental Protection Agency with fraudulent and misleading research on the basis of which safe levels were adopted worldwide for dioxin. Those levels are now being reviewed. [affidavit of Cath Jenkins of USA EPA is available from us on request.]  More recently, a BBC documentary revealed that the U.K. Ministry for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries had been presented with misleading information on the safety of BST, a genetically engineered growth hormone produced by Monsanto. Scientists working at Sussex University found that figures subsequently published by Monsanto differed from the original tests, and that summaries of a fourteen week trial had only included the first eight weeks in a manner that would mislead regulatory staff into believing the product was safer than the full fourteen weeks show.