This is the story of a young mother who has been tackling a
multinational corporation on the issue of the labelling of
genetically modified food, winning media support along the way.
On March 27, 2003, Zhu Yanling, a 33-year-old mother, bought
some Nestle Nesquik drinking chocolate in a Shanghai Carrefour
outlet. It was for her baby.
But then she read a Greenpeace report and learned that the
product contained genetically modified ingredients. And what's more
on checking the packaging she found that the product was not
labeled to disclose its genetically modified content.
Nestle is an industry giant. It is the biggest multinational
food corporation in the world. But now one of its regular customers
in China had stopped to think. Do we have the right to know if the
food we buy has been genetically modified?
She went to see her lawyer Wu Dong. She asked him if it is legal
for Nestle to put transgenic foods on the market in China without
labeling them as such. Wu Dong told her that he believed that
Nestle may have contravened Chinese Consumer Protection and Product
Quality Legislation.
She also contacted Greenpeace International. According to
Greenpeace, they had already started to check Nestle's products.
Several times since last February they had found genetically
modified Nestle products on Chinese mainland shelves.
She was to discover that there is no clear and unequivocal
answer to the question of whether or not transgenic foods are safe
for human consumption. Some scientists have suggested care should
be taken in the application of this new technology especially where
baby foods are concerned.
Nestle has undertaken not to market such products in Europe. But
the company does produce transgenic foods for the Chinese market
and what's more over here they do not label these products to
disclose their genetically modified nature.
Zhu Yanling took exception to this. She made up her mind to
fight for her right to know, the right to be able to choose for
herself and her baby about the foods the biotech industries are now
turning out.
So she went to the Shanghai Nestle Co. looking for answers. The
senior staff at Shanghai Nestle insisted that the transgenic foods
were safe, high quality products. But on the issue of why they
failed to label their products as "genetically modified" they were
of the view that this was not necessary. They insisted that they
have not broken any law in China.
In the absence of a satisfactory reply in Shanghai, Zhu decided
she would go to Switzerland and raise her concerns at the Nestle
headquarters.
Before she went to Switzerland, she went on the Internet to test
public opinion on the issue of genetically modified food. She would
take this feedback on what people actually thought with her to
deliver in person when in Switzerland.
"I think it is natural that these food companies should wish to
find out what their customers really want. I just want a chance to
speak to the senior staff at Nestle and tell them that their
Chinese customers dislike biotech foods just as much as their
European counterparts," Zhu Yanling said.
Before she left for Switzerland, she said she was going to knock
on Nestle's silent door in the hope that it might open. But she was
to be disappointed. She did have a one-hour meeting with the senior
staff at the multinational's headquarters. She also sent them an
open letter.
But she was to be disappointed as she felt her concerns remained
unresolved and the Nestle position remained unchanged. They
insisted that their products are safe and of high quality. They
operate in many different countries often with different
regulations and always comply with local legislation. They did not
accept the view that there were much the same reservations about
genetically modified foods in China as they were in Europe though
conceding that this had not actually been tested by market research
prior to launch on the China market.
She had been given no new clarification that she could accept as
to why the products were not labeled as genetically modified. "I am
really not satisfied with the Nestle attitude. The staff at the
Nestle headquarters even denied there was any genetically modified
material in their Nestle Nesquik. They had test results for a
packet of Nestle Nesquik. But it is not the one I bought in China.
The two packets of Nestle Nesquik were actually produced in
different continents," Zhu Yanling said.
Though she expressed disappointment at Nestle's attitude in
Switzerland, she felt happy with the support she had received from
the media and from ordinary people there after they had heard her
story.
They had admired her bravery. Here was a young mother who had
come to Switzerland on her own to give her opinion to Nestle, the
biggest multinational food corporation in the world.
Though she had met with many difficulties, she had never thought
of giving up. She said,"Nestle products have made a big impression
on my generation. Among the many brand names on the supermarket
shelves, I choose Nestle products without hesitation. So, I have to
carry on because I am a mother. I have to protect my child."
After her trip to Switzerland, Zhu Yanling is now bringing a
lawsuit against the Shanghai Nestle Co. and the Shanghai Lianjia
Supermarket Co. She is seeking just 13.6 yuan (US$1.64) in
compensation, twice the amount she spent on her purchase. Just as
she wrote in an open letter to netizens, her fight is for the right
to know and the right to chose where transgenic foods are
concerned.
Zhu Yanling said,"Everyone who lives in society should accept
responsibilities relating to family, work and society. I am trying
to live up to my responsibilities as a mother. I just want to
protect my baby from harm."
Today she is still seeking a resolution to the issue.
(China.org.cn by Wu Nanlan, January 17, 2004)
