Media response - GM crops
Published on 10 September 2020
- I understand the council will next week decide if it will apply to the Minister for Onkaparinga to be designated GM Free. I would like to speak to the Mayor Erin Thompson in the next day or two about this issue, which seems to have attracted a fair bit of attention from residents and stakeholders. I also want to clarify if the proposed moratorium is for the entire Onkaparinga Council area or just for certain areas of it such as the McLaren Vale wine region.
Comments attributed to Mayor Erin Thompson
Council will decide whether it’s appropriate for our region to seek non-GM crop designation at its meeting on Tuesday evening, though the final decision remains entirely with the state government.
We engaged with our community on this issue, and while there are strong and considered opinions on both sides of the debate, the majority told us they believe making an application is the right thing for our region. In particular, many of our primary producers and food manufacturers expressed concern that GM crops in our city could have a negative impact on their current and future export potential.
The government’s approach to lifting the state-wide moratorium allows for the reality that different regions of the state may require different approaches.
Of particular focus to the City of Onkaparinga is McLaren Vale – one of the most famous and marketable wine regions in the world and a place where the pre-eminent industries are grape growing, winemaking and tourism.
Our role is to take an impartial role in collecting community views, with a focus on evidence of financial impacts either way, and for that information to help Elected Members decide whether it’s appropriate for our region to seek non-GM crop designation.
Our wine growers and producers have provided us with evidence that suggests designating the City of Onkaparinga as GM free would mitigate the risk of our region losing millions of dollars each year in export value. Council will be considering this carefully, along with the other evidence provided, as we understand our community’s passion for – and the international appeal of – our area’s clean and green reputation.
Further information
We received 314 survey responses and 46 submissions throughout the engagement, with a good representation from our primary producers/food manufacturers.
We wanted to hear all perspectives – which is why we invited the Grain Producers of SA (GPSA), the National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia (NASAA) and the McLaren Vale Wine Grape Tourism Association (MVGWTA) to present to us at a workshop on 25 August, along with findings from the community engagement.
Based on what we heard that night, Elected Members asked for a draft application to come to Council for further consideration on 15 September. If Council endorses the application, it will then go to the Minister for his consideration.
Our understanding of the legislation is that councils can only apply for their entire area to be designated GM-free – we read the Act as the whole of Council area, so we don’t believe that we can propose discrete areas of our City for designation.
ENDS