Europe is ‘critically dependent on GM animal feed’: US adviser

05-Mar-2013 - Last updated on 19-Aug-2020 at 08:35 GMT

The European livestock sector is critically dependent on GM feed, said US government adviser Jack Bobo

Politicians should admit the European livestock industry is critically dependent on GM animal feed, according to a senior US government adviser.

In this exclusive podcast Jack Bobo, senior biotechnology adviser to the US State Department, told a Chartered Institute of Marketing seminar in London last week (February 28) that politicians and industry leaders should acknowledge the EU’s dependence on GM feed.

“Europe is the second largest region in the world for the import of biotechnology products,” he said.

Up to a third of the EU’s livestock industry is reliant on feedstuffs produced from genetically modified crops. Removing such ingredients would have “a devastating impact” on livestock production, he said.

Food crisis

But he feared it would take a food crisis for Europe to acknowledge the role of GM food.

National Farmers Union deputy president Meurig Raymond warned Food Manufacture’s Business Leaders’ Forum in January: “It is becoming impossible for the livestock industry – the white meat industry, pigs and broiler producers – to source non-GM protein on the global market.”

Meanwhile, Bobo is a personal advisor to former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton – widely tipped to run for President at the next US presidential elections in 2016.

So, will Bobo’s boss run for president? Listen to this podcast to hear his answer.