KEY POINTS:
New Zealand food companies get a thumbs-up over their position on not including genetically engineered materials in their products.
Greenpeace's latest GE Free Food Guide reflects a strong ongoing non-GE position, said the environmental group.
It also praises Goodman Fielder - Australasia's largest food company - for its
unprecedented anti-GE stance.
Last November, the company, which has brands like Edmonds, Meadow Lea, Meadow Fresh and Irvines, spoke out against the lifting of Australian state bans on genetically engineered food crops.
Chief executive officer Peter Margin cited consumers' uncertainty about the long-term effects of GE food and their preference for foods that were not genetically modified.
Greenpeace GE spokesman Mike Hagler said the company showed that it was in touch with its consumers.
"People believe they have a basic right to know if the food they're eating is made from GE crops or not, and that's what the Greenpeace GE guide informs them of."
He said the guide, in its sixth edition, was needed even more now following the Government's decision in December to allow GE animal feed for human consumption.
Companies cited in the guide as not using GE ingredients include biscuits manufacturer Arnotts, snack goods maker Eta, drinks company Phoenix and chocolate maker Whittakers.
Kellogg's is in the process of removing GE ingredients. "Kellogg's actively sources raw materials that are not required to be labelled as GM," a spokesman said, "and we work closely with our suppliers to verify that our ingredients do not require GM labelling.
"We follow the GM labelling requirements of the Food Standards Code (Standard 1.5.2 Division 2) and none of our products require labelling under the Food Standards Code."
Food giants Bluebird and Coca- Cola, among others, were criticised for having no clear policy of removing GE-originated ingredients. Greenpeace said Bluebird's inclusion in the category was due to its new ownership by PepsiCo, which lacks a non-GE policy.
Coca-Cola said the products it makes and sells in New Zealand do not contain GM ingredients.
"You can be assured that we will continue to adhere to and rely on the determinations of Food Standards Australia and NZ in relation to all food safety," a spokesman said.
"We believe the rating for Coca- Cola in the Greenpeace GE Free Food Guide to be misleading to New Zealand consumers.
"We were not contacted by Greenpeace prior to the publication of the GE Free Food Guide and we will be taking this matter up directly with Greenpeace in New Zealand."
Two products on New Zealand shelves are actually labelled as containing GE ingredients; ProNutro from Bokomo Foods, a GE maize breakfast cereal from South Africa, and Stagg Chili Beans from Hormel Foods, a GE-labelled canned bean product from the US.
Mr Hagler said GE ingredients to look out for are soy, maize or corn, canola and cottonseed oil.
