NSW farmers to discuss GM crops

"Most farmers' knowledge level when it comes to GM crops is just too low for them to make informed decisions." So says Angus Macneil, Chair of the Association Grains Committee, NSW Farmers' Association.

But in an attempt to redress the imbalance, Macneil has helped organize an open forum at Canowindra later this month, where farmers will be able to discuss the pros and cons of genetically modified canola.

A range of speakers have been invited to attend, including farmers' perspectives from a Canadian grain grower and a member of the Network of Concerned Farmers, plus representatives from Monsanto and Bayer, grain marketers and the CSIRO.

"The problem is there is so much inaccurate information going around - at one recent meeting only two out of a hundred admitted they knew enough about GM crops to make a sound decision. There really is a serious shortfall in the availability of informed information. This forum is designed to facilitate greater awareness of the issues," he said.

The forum, which is sponsored by the Grains Research and Development Corporation in conjunction with NSW Farmers' Association and the Grains Council of Australia, will be followed by an open meeting where growers can ask questions about identity preservation, marketing and cross-contamination.

Macneil said the central problem at the moment was that farmers were making GM decisions based on philosophical or emotional information. He said this wasn't a new phenomena, and that the reaction to any new area of production, such as the introduction of pasteurised milk, was almost inevitably met with a negative reaction. "The usual response is: 'whoa, whoa' to anything new, but we should try to find out what it means before we do anything either way," he said.

"And research shows that once people have made up their minds on things like this -- whether they are farmers or consumers -- it is very hard to change that decision. So we are trying to educate [farmers] before they decide, and help them come to informed decisions," he added.

One area Macneil described as disturbing was the political approach to GM growing. He described current political policies to GM crops as being made "on the run". He said politicians were not necessarily uninformed themselves, but were responding to community concerns which were in turn driven by lack of information.

"Farmers usually have a more open mind, so we are hoping to get between 50 and 100 people attending this forum. If we do see a good response we will hold other similar forums in other places," he said.

"We have to make sure we don't get left behind. Equally, we don't want to rush into this thing; we need to be careful. There is no point us growing these crops, even if they offer better returns and so on if we can't sell them. Theirs is no sense in that - but we have to make sure we get the information [there] to help farmers make up their own minds," he said.

The forum will take place at 4pm on March 27 at the Canowindra Services and Citizen's Club, Gaskill St, Canowindra. Call 1300 794 000 for more details.