The precautionary principle

The precautionary principle is an important concept that can be applied to a number of environmental issues, including GE foods. The basic idea behind the precautionary principle is this: we shouldn't wait for a disaster to happen before taking action. We should anticipate potential threats, and move forward with caution.

Take GE foods as an example. GE foods are living organisms that have been released into the environment - and onto your dinner table - without long term health tests and without a clear understanding of how they will interact with other living organisms. Biotechnology corporations such as Monsanto are not required to prove that GE is safe. It's up to organizations like Greenpeace to prove that they aren't. And that's all backwards. The burden of proof should be on producers such as Monsanto; they should have to prove that their product is safe before releasing it onto the market.

We believe that, given the evidence that GE foods are potentially dangerous to both human health and the environment, far more testing and research is required before they are released onto the market. While it's too late to stop some of the damage that's already done by widespread GE crops such as soy, canola and corn, there's still time to limit their release. We can also work to stop the introduction of new GE crops such as wheat, fish  and trees.