Concern about possible effects of genetically modified organisms is a legitimate issue, but is it Victoria city council鈥檚 issue? Councillors were elected to guide the municipal administration on the business of the city. They were elected to ensure roads are functional and safe, that tax revenues are properly spent, that building codes are enforced, that residents have sufficient parks and other green spaces 鈥� the list goes on.
But unless councillors have managed to wrestle all local issues into submission and have time on their hands, that list does not include advocating one way or the other on GMOs.
Certainly, the council is charged with doing what it can to ensure the well-being of citizens, and it can be argued that extends to ensuring the food supply is safe. But it seems a stretch to be delving into the responsibilities of the provincial and federal governments when so many local challenges require the councillors鈥� undivided attention.
City councillors voted unanimously last week in favour of a motion calling for a suite of rules and scientific protocols to restrict and monitor genetically modified plants in sa国际传媒 and sa国际传媒.
Councillors Ben Isitt and Jeremy Loveday persuaded council to support their motion, stating in a report: 鈥淕enetically engineered plants and foods have not been adequately tested by any federal agency for long-term impacts on human and environmental health.鈥�
Their motion includes calling for all genetically modified foods sold in sa国际传媒 to be labelled as such.
鈥淲e鈥檙e calling on the federal government to ensure [that] an adequate system of scientific testing, independent of industry, is in place for all genetically modified crops and products,鈥� Isitt said.
鈥淲e鈥檙e also calling for a regime of mandatory labelling of all food products containing GMOs, a sensible consumer protection measure that many other countries have already adopted.鈥�
Councillors also agreed to call on the federal and provincial governments to put a moratorium on permitting any new genetically modified products on the market 鈥渦ntil more independent and transparent scientific assessments are developed.鈥�
It鈥檚 a controversial issue with widely divergent opinions. Health sa国际传媒 says genetically modified foods pose no more risk to human health than conventional foods, and new genetically modified crops are subject to assessment before they are allowed on the Canadian market.
One Harvard University study stated that 鈥渕any different types of modifications in various crops have been tested, and the studies have found no evidence that GMOs cause organ toxicity or other adverse health effects.鈥�
Such statements shouldn鈥檛 鈥� and don鈥檛 鈥� close the door on more scrutiny and research. Other papers express concerns about possible effects that might arise as scientists tinker with the very building blocks of life.
It would be foolish to blindly accept all GMO developments as beneficial, especially given that much of the testing is done by food companies that stand to profit from the developments.
On the other hand, it would be equally foolish to turn our backs on the potential of the science. Already, modified crops have vastly increased food production in Third World countries.
But GMOs weren鈥檛 on anyone鈥檚 platform in the last municipal election, as far as we know. We鈥檙e certain Victoria voters, whatever their stance on such issues, would really like city councillors to focus on the hierarchy of municipal needs, and GMOs likely don鈥檛 place high on that hierarchy for many residents.
When all other local issues have been adequately dealt with, then councillors might consider broader issues. But we鈥檒l cross that bridge when we come to it 鈥� provided the bridge is built on time and on budget.
