WHO'S AFRAID OF FRANKENFOOD?
WHO'S AFRAID OF FRANKENFOOD?
Stop Using Genetically Modified Food" -- Says Greenpeace. Battle Creek, Mich., -- Greenpeace brought a genetically engineered "FrankenTony the Tiger" to Kellogg’s headquarters, to demand that the company stop using ingredients from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in its products. As FrankenTony delivered a statement urging company President Carlos Gutierrez to pledge to remove GMO ingredients from Kellogg’s products, two Greenpeace activists climbed the awning in front of Kellogg’s Cereal City with a twenty-foot banner reading, “Kellogg’s Monstrous Experiment: Stop Genetically Modified Food!” Tony the Tiger is beloved throughout America as an icon of Kellogg’s cereals.
“Kellogg’s has created a monster,” said FrankenTony, who came to Greenpeace when he realized the risks of GMO foods. “Kids used to trust me, but they love butterflies, and the corn Kellogg’s uses in Frosted Flakes could kill butterflies. GMOs are a risk this company shouldn’t be taking with our kids or our environment.” A recent Cornell study showed that genetically engineered corn pollen killed monarch butterfly larvae.
Accompanied by Greenpeace Genetic Engineering Specialist, Charles Margulis, FrankenTony entered the corporate headquarters shortly after 10 this morning. The pair brought Mr. Gutierrez results of a survey showing that most Americans do not believe that Kellogg’s would use GMOs in its products. Only 30 percent of over 1,000 people surveyed by Caravan Opinion Research in October thought that Kellogg’s would use genetically engineered ingredients. Fifty-six percent said they would not buy food from a company that promises some countries uncontaminated food but will not make the same promise to Americans. Letters from Kellogg’s to European consumers say that the company’s products sold there do not contain GMOs, but Kellogg’s refuses to offer Americans this same assurance.
“Kellogg’s cannot maintain the trust of American consumers if they continue this double-standard,” said Margulis. “Doctors and scientists around the world are warning that GMO crops should not be in the food chain or the environment, yet Kellogg’s markets GMO cereal to our children. Kellogg’s should follow Gerber’s lead and stop using GMO food.” In July, a Greenpeace report showing the presence of GMOs in a Gerber product prompted the country’s largest baby food maker to announce that it would stop using GMO ingredients.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is holding the first of three public hearings on biotech foods. Though the agency announced the meetings less than a month ago, it has been flooded with hundreds of requests to attend and speak. “Kellogg’s says Americans are not concerned about biotech foods, but clearly the deluge of interest the FDA has received shows that people here care as much as anyone about what we eat,” added Margulis. “The only responsible thing for Kellogg’s to do is take immediate steps to stop using GMO food.”
Written by: Greenpeace
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