On February 21, 2019, Consumers Union of Japan submitted the following public comment in response to the Japanese government’s GM Food, etc. Investigative Panel of the Pharmaceutical Affairs and Food Sanitation Council, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) regarding the handling of food modified by genome editing. Consumers Union of Japan is working for a sound and healthy future for all. This is why we are active in protecting our surrounding environment and the safety of our daily food. We believe this is what the Japanese government also wants. However, there are reports that the government has concluded that the Food Sanitation Law will not apply to food obtained…
Essay: GM in Europe vs. Japan
I took part in the 9th GMO-Free Europe Conference which was held on 6th and 7th of September 2018 as one of three delegates from GMO No! Campaign, which has been campaigning against GMOs with the Consumers Union of Japan. More than 200 participants not only from Europe, but also from Africa, Asia, North America gathered in Berlin to discuss GM issues. Until I visited Berlin, I did not know much about the situation surrounding GM issues in Europe. What I was told before my departure was that in the EU, food made of GM ingredients were hardly available because of mandatory labelling requirement for GM foods; also, European people…
Open Letter to Australia: Please Regulate New GM Technologies Strictly
To: Minister Bridget McKenzie Parliament House, Canberra ACT 2600 Australia February 20, 2019 We are Consumers Union of Japan, founded in 1969, as a member-based consumer organization. One of our main concerns is the many problems with genetically modified organisms (GMO) and GM food. Consumers in Japan are strongly opposed to GM technology and do not want to eat such products. In light of this, we are alarmed to hear that Australia is considering to deregulate new GM technologies, including CRISPR, in animals, plants and microbes. Japanese consumers would not at all be willing to eat such products, either. We do not believe the claims that these new technologies are “precise”…
Japan Resources – No 173
Please click here CUJ-JR-173 for the latest issue of Japan Resources, our English newsletter. This time, we consider large international meetings, and wonder if they are effective enough. There seems to be problems with making progress both in the areas of climate change and biological diversity. We hope you will continue to stay updated with CUJ’s activities and news on our English website, and support our campaigns! Contents: Please Stop Selling Wheat Flour with Glyphosate Residue CUJ Environment Working Group Consumer Affairs Agency holds explanatory meeting for GM food labelling changes What is Behind the Cheap Bananas? Report from the COP-MOP 9 Meeting (CBD COP 14) in Egypt New Videos on…
Please Stop Selling Wheat Flour with Glyphosate Residue
17 January 2019 To: Nisshin Foods Nisshin Seifun Group Showa Sangyo Please stop selling wheat flour with glyphosate residue Consumers Union of Japan and the No! GMO Campaign work together for safe and healthy food for all consumers. We tested wheat flour from different companies for the residue of the herbicide glyphosate, and detected such residue in products sold by your company. In 2015, WHO’s International Cancer Research Institute has concluded that glyphosate is “probably carcinogenic to humans.” In 2016, a joint report by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UN said that there was some evidence of association between glyphosate exposure and risk of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma…