Ten more GMO feed on Turkey’s doorstep
ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News
Turkey has so far allowed six kinds of genetically modified products. Hürriyet photo.
The deadline for public input on Turkey’s biosecurity committee’s recent regulation to allow the import of 10 kinds of animal feed made from genetically modified organisms (GMO) passed yesterday.The regulation, which was brought about by Turkey’s Animal Feed Industrialists Association and the Meat and Egg Producers Association, foresees the import of 10 kinds of new genetically modified feed.
In the first phase of the regulation, a report on the economic and social impacts of the new feeds was prepared by a scientific committee and published for public comment on the website of Turkey’s biosecurity committee last month. The report approved of the use of these products in Turkey.
Greenpeace in Turkey has launched a campaign against the import of GMOs, saying that the products will turn living organisms in Turkey into experiments.
The campaign has collected about 85,000 signatures from people who are against importing GMOs. Turkey’s biosecurity committee will now evaluate the input from the public regarding GMOs.
The public input will not be evaluated as for or against but whether they will add to or criticize certain points of the initial report, said Hakan Yardımcı, a professor in Ankara University’s Veterinary Faculty and a member of the biosecurity committee. “If the aim was to evaluate how many people are for and against GMOs, then we would put a yes or no button on our website. We want to know why people are against these products, that’s why people should show scientific explanations in their reasoning,” he told the Daily News.
Yardımcı said the 10 products were already in use in Europe and in the United States.
“These are products that are approved by other countries,” Yardımcı said. “Our scientific committee also evaluated the products and prepared a report that affirms their use in Turkey.”
Greenpeace in Turkey said the report was exactly the same as previous reports that were prepared to allow other GMO products. “There are no criteria on how these reports are prepared and no one controls them,” Greenpeace said in a statement.
Turkey has so far allowed imports of three kinds of soy and three kinds of corn products that are genetically modified
“These are products that are approved by other countries,” Yardımcı said. “Our scientific committee also evaluated the products and prepared a report that affirms their use in Turkey.”
Greenpeace in Turkey said the report was exactly the same as previous reports that were prepared to allow other GMO products. “There are no criteria on how these reports are prepared and no one controls them,” Greenpeace said in a statement.
Turkey has so far allowed imports of three kinds of soy and three kinds of corn products that are genetically modified
