First Major Supermarkets to Dispense GE Free Guide

Auckland: Foodstuffs, New Zealand's biggest retailer and producer of the Pam's private label brand of products, is allowing the owner operators of their New World stores to dispense the latest edition of the Greenpeace GE Free Food Guide.

Foodstuffs strengthened their private label GE free policy position last year by committing to exclude GE ingredients and feed from their Budget and Pam's products. Now much of the PAMs range is listed for the first time in the non-GE 'green' section of the popular GE Free Guide. This makes Foodstuffs the first of the two major supermarket chains to achieve a 'green' rating for a considerable portion of their private label brand range.

"Foodstuffs private label non-GE position is great and the New World Owners should be commended for making the Guide available to their customers. It has already proven a very popular information tool for the public and I'm certain these wee guides will fly out the door," said Greenpeace GE Campaigner Steve Abel. There have been 100,000 copies of this latest credit-card sized fold out guide published and this is the fifth edition of the Greenpeace Guide since it's first publication in 2000.

The Foodstuffs executive responded positively last month to Greenpeaces' suggestion that New World stores could dispense the free guide. Already five New World stores have put their hand up, including the Green Bay, Remuera and Victoria Park stores in Auckland and the Whitianga and Taihape stores. The large Henderson Pak 'n' Save is to offer GE Free Guides on 10 of their 16 counters. The Body Shop and a number of organic shops throughout the country will also carry the Guide.

"The steady shift away from the use of GE foods continues in response to customer demand," says Abel. Since the previous edition was produced in November last year both Arnotts (now green) and Mainland Products (now orange) have moved from the red categorisation.

Mainland's shift is very significant because it is based on a new policy that their suppliers not use feeds containing GE crops in dairy production (1). "Inghams are a major feed supplier to the dairy industry so this is another blow to their continued use of GE soy," said Abel. Greenpeace is currently running a campaign for Inghams and McDonalds to stop sourcing GE soy feed and commit to a non-GE policy

The Guide is being launched today in time for the arrival of the Rainbow Warrior to Auckland on 12 May. There will be open days on the boat on the weekend of 15 and 16 May from 10am - 4pm.

Full supermarket and fast food guide online at http://www.gefreefood.org.nz

To download the guide http://www.greenpeace.org.nz/pdf/foodguide_winter04.pdf

To download the front image http://greenpeace.org.nz/photos/Food Guide front cover final.jpg

To download the poster for supermarkets http://greenpeace.org.nz/photos/GE Free Food Guide Poster.jpg

© Scoop Media

Greenpeace

Greenpeace exists because this fragile earth deserves a voice.

Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning organisation that acts to change attitudes and behaviour, to protect and conserve the environment and to promote peace.

CONTACT GREENPEACE

• Email - info@greenpeace.org.nz
• Facebook
• Twitter - @GreenpeaceNZ

• Website - www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand
• Google+
• YouTube

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>