Our Honey and its saleability

[beebreeder]

Hi Everyone, a good friend just e mailed this and I thought it worth some discussion.
This decision by the European Court of Justice (see link below) could have far reaching effects on not just honey sales and production but the whole bee keeping community - to a lot of beekeepers if your bees are going to produce honey that you cannot sell or give away because it potentially has GMO pollen in it then this will result in beekeepers keeping bees purely as expensive 'pets' with a potentially disastrous fall in numbers of beekeepers and colonies. Assuming an authorization to market honey in Europe is granted the only way round this ruling would seem to be to filter out any pollen (virtually impossible for the smaller pollen grains) or to put a label on your honey saying it may contain GMO pollen (watch sales drop) .


http://www.warenverein.com/d.afp?&d=_3680UZUBX

 

[Adam]

My understanding was you can charge the GMO farmer for damages in these cases, so you effectively "sell" your honey crop to the farmer as damages. Can't remember when / where, or how true this is though.

adam

 

[Queens59]

Either ALL producers refuse to sell honey until the rules change...or there could be a good market in selling a jar for ££ that 'unfortunately' is full of honey...

 

[Hivemaker.]

My understanding was you can charge the GMO farmer for damages in these cases, so you effectively "sell" your honey crop to the farmer as damages. Can't remember when / where, or how true this is though.

adam

Sounds good,a guaranteed market.

 

[Nose Ma]

A first post - please be gentle.

You may be thinking of this article re: sale to farmers:

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,14843153,00.html

I think (if you don't want to read the whole thing) that this paragraph sums things up:

"Monsanto's genetically modified corn type MON 810 has not been authorized for sale on the European food market. If new regulations are established, making it impossible for beekeepers to sell their product because it has been contaminated by pollen from MON 810 crops, the beekeepers may be able to claim damages from Monsanto."

(my emphasis)

There is a little more on the putative sales restrictions, and where this case came from, here:

http://greenbio.checkbiotech.org/news/honey_made_close_modified_crops_may_need_regulatory_approval

Best
NM

 

[greatbritishhoney]

I think the difficulty would be proving that a particular farmer's crops were responsible. If your bees were sited within foraging distance of two different GM farmers how woudl you decide who to sue and how would you prove?

 

[bee ginnner]

And how many of you are producing so much honey that the compensation would even start to cover the legal expenses never mind the time factor.

It would only bee viable for national beeks society,s

 

[chrismcd]

I would worry about it when the problem arises.

At the moment no GM crops are approved in the EU.

When they are approved, presumably their pollen will be approved as well.

I have a nasty feeling that we are talking about Monsanto's 'Roundup ready' Oilseed Rape and their maize (with BT genes?), so I cannot say that I am in any hurry.

More interestingly, it could lead to a "non tariff barrier' to cheap honey imports since a lot of them will be coming from GM using countries.

 

[Brosville]

Don't fool yourselves, the odious Caroline "GM lobbyist for 15 years" Spelman is at this very moment poised to steamroller through GMOs - as for suing Monsanto, if experience in other countries is anything to go by, Monsanto will sue YOU for pinching their GM material (I jest not)..........
There has been enormous pressure placed on Europe by the US of late to allow GM, and it looks like they'll get their way............ (aided and abetted by the likes of Spelman)............)

 

[Hivemaker.]

More interestingly, it could lead to a "non tariff barrier' to cheap honey imports since a lot of them will be coming from GM using countries.

Better get some GM free labels printed then,and charge more.

 

[Brosville]

It is actually one of the most unarguable cases against the release of GMOs - it removes choice from the public - it removes the choice NOT to have GM, as once it's "out there" it pollutes other crops (see what's happened in other countries...)

 

[taff..]

I would worry about it when the problem arises.

At the moment no GM crops are approved in the EU.

.

the problem is already here, despite Somerset councils disaproval - that can read here


A GM crop was grown in Somerset http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1098476/GM-contaminated-crop-grown-blunder-sparks-fears-gene-spread-fields.html

 

[bushman1872]

that news is very worrying especially as osr is a real cash crop for farmers and they obviously want maximum amounts of crop to survive. I'm not so worried about super weeds its the super weedkillers that would have to be used on them, surely this alone would have serious repercussions. As for the saleability of honey potentially contaminated with GM pollen this is seriously bad news many beeks won't be able to afford to keep the bees if they cannot make a few quid from the honey. Even if GM stuff becomes legal in the uk who in their right mind is going to buy a product that potentially contains the stuff. Very worrying

 

[Brosville]

Spelman is preparing a campaign that will try to convince us that anyone against GMOs is "unscientific", and that it is totally benign, utterly essential,(rather like nuclear power and pesticides), and should be welcomed into our fields and onto our plates ......

Which of course is utter bunk, but when the US is pressing and the lobbyists funds are flying, who are we to argue?