8 in 10 people in the UK want to see all genetically modified organisms (GMOs) labelled and traceable through the farming and food chain.

 With the introduction of new regulations, under the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act, the government has removed a long-standing requirement for labelling – and for full traceability – from a new genetic modification technique that it calls “precision breeding”, or PBO. It has also lowered – and even removed – key environmental protections for these new GMOs.

What we are doing

We need to raise at least £85,000 to cover the costs and liabilities of a judicial review into the government’s failure to consider all the implications of this irrational change in law. These costs may rise significantly as the case progresses. We are not seeking to ‘ban’ GMOs. But, where the use of novel and largely untested technologies in food and the environment is concerned, we believe in precaution, transparency and truth. 

We are demanding that the government fulfils the reasonable expectation of UK consumers, farmers and food businesses that these novel organisms are subject to rigorous environmental and safety assessments and meaningful public consultation and are clearly labelled and fully traceable ‘from field to fork'.

Why this matters

Our food system shapes our environment, and we can't protect either without transparent and truthful information that allows us to make informed choices and take informed actions.

These new regulations take all that away: 

• Consumers have lost the right to know and make an informed choice, at the point of sale, about what they are eating.
• Organic and biodynamic farmers and food producers have a legal obligation to avoid contamination with all GMOs, including PBOs. The new regulations take away the necessary tools and processes to ensure the integrity of organic and to avoid loss of consumer confidence and trade.
• Artisanal, traditional, natural and geographical indication farmers and food producers will find it difficult and expensive to avoid contamination, risking the integrity of their brands and potential loss of income as well.
• The environment is at risk since all GMOs can interact with wild and fragile ecosystems in unpredictable ways. They can multiply, persist and quickly become dominant.
• Devolved nations Scotland and Wales have explicitly said they don’t want to grow or sell GMOs and yet the Westminster government intends to force unlabelled precision bred GMOs into their markets.

Our legal case

Over the last 5 years, we have exhausted every available avenue of negotiation with the government. Its intransigence and unwillingness to listen to legitimate concerns have brought us to this point. 

Our legal team has identified serious potential illegalities in these new regulations, including breaches of the Human Rights Act, the Aarhus Convention, the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and the Habitats Directive. They have also identified areas of overreach where the regulations go beyond what Parliament has authorised, for instance, preventing any safety testing that could reveal problems with these organisms.

What do we want to achieve?

In addition to civil society, multiple government agencies have criticised the Genetic Technology Act and the new regulations as vague, misleading, unworkable and ultimately "not fit for purpose". Concern has been raised that the new legislation benefits only the GMO industry. We believe these new regulations should be revoked before they become operational in November 2025, that a full impact assessment should be performed and that a new, more robust and inclusive process should be put in place to rewrite them in a way that is responsive to the needs of citizens and the natural world.

Please help us reach our funding goal 

We are grateful for every donation that brings us closer to our goal of a transparent, trustworthy and democratic approach to regulating GMOs in food, farming and the wider environment.