Greenpeace has discovered illegal GM (Genetically Modified) rice from China has contaminated food products brought in the UK.
Illegal, genetically modified (GM) rice - unapproved for human consumption and containing a toxin that may cause allergic reactions in humans - has been found in food products in the UK, Germany and France.
The contaminated rice, grown in China, is an experimental variety designed to produce a toxin to protect it from certain insect pests. Containing a protein that may cause allergic reactions, it hasn't been declared safe for cultivation or for consumption.
Last year, we exposed the strain's illegal sale and cultivation in China. The Chinese government quickly stepped in to destroy the crops and punish the scientists selling the seeds. Unfortunately, by that time the contamination had already spread across China and throughout the food chain - from farms through wholesalers to processed foods like Heinz baby food.
Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth have now discovered that contaminated Chinese rice products have appeared in the UK, France and Germany - marking the first time ever that this illegal strain has been found outside China.
When we tested samples of rice products, five positive samples were found containing an illegal GM organism not approved anywhere in the world. But this may only be the tip of the iceberg. Rice products are included in everything from baby food to yoghurt.
"These findings are shocking and should trigger high-level responses", said Jeremy Tager, GE rice campaigner, Greenpeace International. "Consumers should not be left swallowing experimental GE rice that is risky to their health."
Greenpeace is calling for immediate worldwide recall, measures to ensure no further contaminated rice enters the EU and the urgent implementation of a preventative screening system for countries with high contamination risks. Demanding GM-free certification for food from countries that grow and produce GE crops is reasonable, cost effective, and necessary to protect Europe's consumers.
"Innocent consumers again become the victims," says Tager. "Once illegal GE crops are in the food chain, removing them takes enormous effort and cost. It is easier to prevent contamination in the first place," he concluded.
The scale of GE rice contamination in China is apparently much wider than previously thought. With this latest discovery - which follows the discovery of contamination in US long grain rice with a different illegal strain - it is clear that the contamination of rice is now a global problem.
And this is before any GM rice has been grown commercially anywhere in the world.
Rice is the world's most important staple food crop, relied on by billions of people. Any widespread contamination poses an enormous threat to global food security. Despite this, our government still claims that the biotech industry is fit to regulate itself and prevent GM contamination. To date, Greenpeace is unaware of any evidence to support this claim.
Find out more
Download the full briefing document: Illegal experimental rice from China: now entering Europe's food chain.
