MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 14, 2001

'Tis the season to be wary of President's Choice foods, says Council of Canadians

Ottawa - Council of Canadians activists will be warning Loblaws shoppers against President's Choice products this Christmas, following the company's written admission their products are likely to contain genetically engineered ingredients.

"As Canadians go about their holiday grocery shopping, they need to be reminded of what has been done to their food without their knowledge or consent," says Nadège Adam, biotech campaigner for the Council of Canadians. The citizen's group will be distributing information leaflets in front of Loblaws' owned stores in 27 cities from coast to coast on Saturday, December 15, 2001.

"Loblaws has gone to great pains to keep its customers in the dark about the GE content of their products, said Adam. "They have refused to label their packages, they have banned any product carrying GE-free labels, and they worked hard to defeat a recent attempt at labelling legislation. Their products are contaminated with ingredients that have never been tested for human or environmental safety, and they refuse to acknowledge their customers' concerns.

In a letter to the Council of Canadians, Loblaws admits to using GE soybean, corn, and canola based products in their President's Choice line, but leave this information off their packaging.

Some of the holiday items found in Loblaws-owned stores that likely contain GE ingredients are the President's Choice Gingerbread House Kit, the President's Choice Easy-Carve Turkey in a box, the President's Choice All Butter Scottish Chocolate Shortbread, and the President's Choice Brie & Cranberry Filo Parcel.

The Council of Canadians is calling on Loblaws to phase out GE foods from their stores, becoming the first grocery chain in Canada to respond to consumer demand.

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