Inghams' chickens fed GM material

Consumers of Inghams' chickens might have been exposed to genetically modified (GM) material, a leading New Zealand geneticist says.

Inghams Enterprises (NZ) Pty – New Zealand's second-biggest chicken supplier – has been warned for breaching the Fair Trading Act over television and magazine advertisement claims that its chickens do not contain GM ingredients.

The Commerce Commission announced the warning yesterday, saying it would continue monitoring the company.

Inghams' chickens are given soya feed, which contains 13 per cent GM soy.

The commission had asked Jack Heinemann, a professor of genetics and molecular biology at the University of Canterbury, to report whether animals exposed to GM feed carried GM ingredients.

Heinemann said studies showed chickens fed GM material still had DNA and proteins produced by the feed, even when the carcass is at the supermarket.

"There would be exposure to the material in the customers eating this food, but how long it would persist or whether we could detect it in a human being, if we could at all ... I have no idea."

People wanting to avoid GM material should not eat animals fed GM food, he said.

Commerce Commission fair trading director Adrian Sparrow said consumers should be able to rely on advertising statements.

"To consumers, perception is everything. Someone buying a chicken that is promoted as containing no GM ingredients, would not expect that the chickens had been fed on 13 per cent GM soya feed."

Companies found guilty of breaching the Fair Trading Act can be fined up to $200,000.

The Inghams advertisements ran between January 2008 and June 2009 but stopped after the commission launched an investigation – sparked by a complaint from anti-GM campaigners.

Soil and Health Association spokesman Steffan Browning, one of the complainants, believed Inghams should be forced to advertise its GM-feed use.

"This [warning] doesn't necessarily touch those same consumers," he said.

Green Party MP Sue Kedgley said the breach highlighted the need for GM-labelling laws.

Inghams' Te Aroha office refused to answer questions yesterday.

"The company accepts the decision of the NZ Commerce Commission and amended the advertising campaign immediately it became aware of the Commerce Commission concerns," group executive general manager NZ Mike Rozen said in a statement.

Inghams has more than 8000 employees in Australia and New Zealand.

The company's Australian TV advertisements have also run into trouble.

A campaign using the catchphrase "If you don't like chicken, there's something very wrong with you" was the subject of more than 100 complaints.

- © Fairfax NZ News