A coalition of ethical stock market investors have called on 63 US food, beverage and restaurant companies to stop using genetically modified (GM) sugar beet.

The coalition of nearly 300 faith-based investors with over $100bn in invested capital, which goes under the name of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), has launched a web-based campaign against the planting of GM sugar beets from the April 2008 planting season.

The campaign, at www.DontPlantGMOBeets.org, claims that allowing GM sugar into the US food chain would affect thousands of the most widely consumed products in the US.

Among the companies being targeted by the campaigners are McDonald’s, Campbell Soup, Kellogg, Kraft Foods, Sara Lee, PepsiCo and Hershey’s.

The ICCR says it is concerned about sugar beets and other genetically modified crops because of “weak governmental review and oversight, and the lack of long-term, independent and peer-reviewed safety studies” – a concern more often seen among European consumers, who remain largely opposed to any GM crops.

Consumers visiting the site will be encouraged to print off a letter to send to the food companies concerned. It reads: “As a consumer, I am writing to urge your company to publicly oppose the spring 2008 planting of genetically modified sugar beets in the United States.

“You have the power to tell agribusiness firms that you won’t buy sugar made from genetically modified sugar beets. You should know that I am among the more than 50 percent of Americans who avoid genetically modified foods if given a choice.”

 

Full Story: http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=83750-iccr-gm-sugar-beet