Farmers across Ontario and British Columbia have signed a statement raising concern over the possible sale of genetically modified (GM) seeds to small-scale producers and home gardeners in Canada, saying it could lead to the contamination of organic and traditional seeds.
The statement, signed by more than 160 farmers, comes as biotechnology company Norfolk Healthy Produce has signalled plans to sell purple tomato seeds in Canada by the end of the year. The genetically modified tomato, featuring purple fruit flesh, was approved as safe for consumption by Health Canada and cleared for environmental release by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) this past summer.
