GMO free Russia

August 2016

Russian market. Photo Creative Commons

Over the past two years, Russia has chosen its path forward.

While America is pouring its agri-energy into feeding the global market, especially with GMOs, and trying to get everyone else to do the same, Russia has set itself some very different goals.

By 2020, it aims to fully meet the Russian demand for locally produced Russian food. 

At the same time, Russia "could become the world's largest supplier of healthy, environmentally friendly, high-quality food that has long been missing in some western producers ... Especially as the demand on the global market for such products is growing" (Putin).

GMOs will not be used in Russian agriculture and imports of US soya and corn have been banned due to GMO and microbial contaminants. The Russian Minister of Agriculture put the reason succinctly: the Russian government will not poison their citizens.

Consumers in the Land of the Free have lost the battle to get clear, consistent and honest on-pack GM food labelling and have, instead, been fobbed off with an ambiguous mess of codes, phone numbers and difficult-to-access technology which Russian food producers would face fines for using.

While US organic farmers struggle to keep their land and crops free of GM and chemical pollution, Russia has, in the past few years, been giving away land to people willing to farm organically and sustainably.

OUR COMMENT

Scotland has already set off down a similar GM-free path. Giving spare land plus free training and support to would-be organic and non-agrichemical farmers is an interesting idea you might like to suggest to the Scottish government.

SOURCES:

• Putin: Russia Will be Worlds’ Largest Supplier of Healthy Organic Food, Sustainable Pulse, 3.12.15
• Russia bans all Imports of US Soybeans and Corn over Microbial and GMO Contamination, Sustainable Pulse, 11.02.16
• Baxter Dmitry, Putin Human Evolution Under Threat By Big Pharma, GMO, Vaccines, Weston A Price Foundation Facebook, 9.01 16
• President Obama Signs GMO 'Non-labelling' Bill, Leaves Millions of Americans in the Dark, Center for Food Safety 29.07.16
• Russian State Duma Passes Total Ban on GMO Crops and Animals, Sustainable Pulse, 25.06.16