LEWES MP Norman Baker will next week launch a national campaign calling for a five-year ban on the use of genetically modified food in the UK. Amid growing concern about the long term effects of GM foods and crops, MATT ADAMS spoke to Mr Baker and those backing his campaign in Sussex.

TO SOME, genetically modified crops are a modern day miracle signalling a new dawn in hyper-efficient farming and an end to third world starvation.

To others, they are an unchecked threat to man and the environment, created by manufacturers playing God with nature.

But whoever is right, according to Lewes MP Norman Baker, "the time for dilly-dallying is over".

Every day, most of us unwittingly consume food made with GM ingredients, bought in the nation's biggest supermarkets.

Yet few of us know what they are, or more importantly, what long term effects they could be having on our health and the environment around us.

But as American firms like biotech giant Monsanto continue to produce GM crops, dubbed Frankenstein Foods, people are starting to seriously question their safety.

Genetic engineering has allowed scientists to alter the DNA make up of crops.

By inserting specific genes, crops can be strengthened against pests and weeds or made more resilient against drought, with obvious Third World benefits.

GM crops include maize, used in cooking oils, cotton seed, used for animal feed, and tomatoes, which give puree on sale in Britain a longer shelf life.

But it is GM soya, labelled the wonder crop of the 20th century, that has become widely used in more than half of all processed foods sold in the UK.

U.S. producers combine GM soya with natural soya at source, making it virtually impossible to guarantee the purity of any produce containing American soya.

And while GM soya may be resilient and therefore successful to farm, especially in developing countries, experts say its affect on the natural food chain could be catastrophic.

The fear is that vast areas of insect and weed-free crops will leave birds and mammals nothing to eat, and that GM DNA could be transmitted from plant to plant and from animal to animal.

Supermarkets including Safeway, Asda, Tesco, and Sainsbury's now label their own goods which contain GM ingredients in a bid to calm shoppers' worries.

Examples include Safeway tomato puree, Sainsbury's vegetarian bolognaise sauce, Asda reduced-fat Madeira cake and Tesco milk chocolate wafer biscuits.

Iceland has banned GM ingredients altogether. But a number of groups claim that is not enough.

On Tuesday, Mr Baker will launch a cross-party campaign calling for a five-year moratorium on the importation and commercial production of GM foods in this country, giving time for crucial research.

The campaign will seek to enable shoppers to choose GM-free food, stop genetic pollution and ensure independent assessment of the implications of GM crops and food.

Mr Baker, the Liberal Democrat environment spokesman, is due to launch his campaign in the House of Commons.

He said: "When referring to GM crops Jeff Rooker, the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, recently told me: 'We are not in the driving seat'.

"One has to ask if the Government is not controlling the biotechnology juggernaut, then who is?

"The driving seat is currently occupied by a handful of multi-national companies.

"To date, the technology has been allowed to grow apace without any thoughts as to where we might be heading.

"The Minister for Agriculture told me he had no idea what percentage of land would be under GM crops in ten years.

"Genetic modification is being introduced into our food before fundamental issues arising from this new technology have been adequately addressed.

"The Government really must act now to introduce a moratorium, clear and full labelling of goods and mandatory segregation of GM and non-GM. Nothing less will do."

Groups backing the campaign include Friends of the Earth, Action Aid, the Soil Association, the Women's Environment Network, Genetix Food Alert, and the Gaia Foundation, which works on developing country issues.

At Infinity Foods in North Road, Brighton, which sells one of the largest range of purely organic products in the South, bosses have asked suppliers to guarantee their goods are GM-free. Those who cannot have been dropped.

Spokesman Colm Tohill said: "We have now stopped selling any foods made with GM ingredients because we are not certain of the environmental and health consequences they may have."

Infinity foods also owns a warehouse in Portslade and a cafe in Gardner Street.

The company is run as a worker's co-operative and was set up in Brighton in 1971.

Until recently they did stock GM foods, but only products that they couldn't find alternatives for, particularly vegetarian burger mixes.

Phil Brown, from the company, said: "We labelled any GM foods we had and kept certain lines until they could be replaced. And I'm happy to say that we are now totally GM free."

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