OTTAWA -- Canadians may be at risk of developing new allergies and other side-effects from unlabelled genetically modified food and the federal government must make labelling mandatory to protect citizens, say international consumer groups in Ottawa for meetings with the United Nations' food standards committee.

"Labelling is absolutely needed to be able to trace both known and unexpected human health problems," said Michael Hansen, senior research associate at the New York-based Consumers Union. "It's a basic consumer right-to-know issue."

There's currently no way for Canadians to be sure if any product they buy has been genetically modified. It's a serious issue because there have been no long-term studies or research to track health-related problems created by genetically modified food, Hansen said.

"The main concern we have with these products isn't that people are going to eat them and fall over dead tomorrow. It's going to be the longer-term effects," he said.

Consumer groups from Canada and nine other countries are in Ottawa to attend meetings of the UN's committee on food labelling this week and demand that Canada and other countries that have traditionally opposed genetically modified labelling support an international standard for such food.

Genetic modification involves transferring selected gene material from one organism to another, including between non-related species. Some common genetically modified products include soybeans, corn and canola.

Critics of engineered food say not enough is known about the potential side-effects. There is also a concern that when genes are transferred to create new proteins that did not exist, they can create allergic reactions.

Canada has voluntary guidelines for genetically modified food, but since they're not mandatory, it is nearly impossible for consumers to find genetically engineered products that actually have labels, said David Cuming, campaigns manager for Consumers International, an advocacy group based in the United Kingdom.

"If you provide legislation that gives companies the opportunity to label if they want, they're not going to do it. That does not protect the consumer's right to choice," he said.

Health Canada has stringent safety requirements and examines all safety aspects of genetically modified food before it's allowed on shelves, said spokeswoman Carole Saindon.

"The safety assessments that Health Canada conducts are complete. If there's any question at all about the safety of these products, we go back to the manufacturers and producer and ask for additional data," she said.

Health Canada does have the authority to require mandatory labelling on any food product that may be a threat to health or safety, such as the presence of an allergen, Saindon said.

Canada is one of the world's largest exporters of genetically modified food and is one of the only countries in the world that strongly opposes mandatory labelling requirements, Hansen said.

"The countries that are blocking this are the basic countries that do most of the growing and exporting because they don't want their people to have the right to choose," he said.

© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2006