GENETICALLY modified potatoes are getting a firm thumbs down from North America.  

McCain Foods (Canada) announced this week that it would not use geneti- cally modified crops in any of its products. The move is a response to consumer demand rather than any problems with the technology, a spokesperson stressed.

US-based Burger King told Farmers Weekly that although it has not banned GM foods, no GM ingredients are used in its prod- ucts, including French fries.

Achieving that would be diffi- cult when crops have not been seg- regated so far, reports Canadian journalist Stephen Leahy.

McDonalds may follow suit, suggests Fraser's Potato Newsletter in Canada. Another of North America's biggest proces- sors, Lamb Weston, is believed to be using up all its GM supplies before the year end, it adds.

The anti-GM mood is a big blow to farmers in Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick where potatoes are the main crop and where the first GM potatoes were grown, notes Mr Leahy. Producers had been increasingly turning to Monsanto's New Leaf GM vari- eties to protect against Colorado beetle attack.  
 
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