Illegal GM "Triffid" flax shows up in 16 countries
GM-free Ireland, 30 September 2009
http://www.gmfreeireland.org

The UK became the 16th country to report contamination of its food chain on Monday, when the UK Food Standards Agency reported the illegal GMO in cereals and bakery products on the European Food Safety Authority's Rapid Alert System web site (reference 2009:1256): https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/portal/index.cfm?event=notificationsList

It is unclear whether the contamination occurred in Britain and/or Northern Ireland.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland has still not issued any public warning to enable consumers to take precautionary measures, nor has it released any test results, despite being asked to do so by GM-free Ireland on 18 September and by the Irish Doctors Environmental Association on 21 September (see our letters to FSAI).

The products at risk of contamination include flax seeds, animal feed, sprouts, flour, baking mixtures, bread and bakery products, cereals, linseed oil, food supplements, soap, cosmetics, dyes, paints, fibers, paper, ornamental plants, health foods and medicines

As of today, the following countries have reported the illegal GMO in their food chains:

Austria
Belgium
Canada
Germany
Hungary
Italy
Luxembourg
Mauritius
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States

This is just the latest in a long list of contamination incidents which disprove the agri-biotech industry's claim that GM crops can safely "co-exist" with conventional crops: http://www.gmcontaminationregister.org

To add insult to injury, the Canadian Flax Council is using the GM Triffid scandal to attack the EU's zero tolerance food safety policy for unapproved GMOs.