No-frills brands free of GM tags

By ANNE BESTON

New Zealand's major food retailers are moving to ensure low-budget house brands do not have to carry a "genetically modified" label. But one chain wants its brand completely GM-free.

Progressive Enterprises is protecting its house brands by guaranteeing they will have no genetically modified ingredients.

Merchandise general manager Mark Brosnan said the company, which owns the Foodtown and Countdown chains, was working with suppliers to achieve GM-free status for their Signature and Basics ranges, which make up about 25 per cent of the house brands market.

Progressive was introducing the Identity Preservation system, adopted by supermarket chains in Britain, to guarantee a product had no genetically modified ingredients.

Tegel has recently adopted the same system with its chicken feed.

Mr Brosnan said indications from suppliers on what other products would need a GM label after December 7, when the new rules come into force, were that very few would be over the 0.1 per cent threshold.

The Australia NZ Food Authority standards mean foods with 0.1 per cent or more of GM ingredients must be labelled by December 7 as "may" contain them.

Foodstuffs, which owns Pak 'N Save, New World and Four Square, and which has the Pam's cut-price brand, is also working with suppliers so its house brands will be below the 0.1 per cent threshold and therefore escape labelling.

Woolworths is also aiming to have its corporate brands below the threshold.

nzherald.co.nz/ge

Report of the Royal Commission on Genetic Modification

GE lessons from Britain

GE links

GE glossary