The British government was last night resisting pressure to ban genetically modified foods after tests found they could damage the immune systems of rats and stunt their growth. Meanwhile, the Ex- press reported that a new GM crop had been banned in Europe.
Foods Minister Mr Jeff Rooker rejected calls for an immediate halt to sales of GM products following reports on research carried out on rats who were fed genetically modified potatoes. But he insisted the government would maintain an "ultra-precautionary" approach to allowing GM foods onto supermarket shelves.
Labour MP Dr Ian Gibson of the Commons Science and Technology Committee was "worried" by the findings of the Rowett Institute in Aberdeen and called on the government to act.
Dr Gibson, a former dean of the biological science department of the University of East Anglia, said ministers should consider calling a moratorium on the sale GM products while more tests carried out.
"This is the worst news I guess yet. We are always worried, the public are certainly worried, about allergies created by GM crops," he told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme.
"There should be an immediate assessment of the science and if it's necessary to repeat it [the experiment], then it should be repeated as fast as possible.
"I think the Government is going to have to react very quickly and have a top flight meeting to decide on that issue." His comments followed a warning by Prof Arpad Puztai, who conducted the research, that his findings raised questions about the safety of GM foods for humans.
Last night, Granada TV's World in Action disclosed that the rats, who were fed potatoes with modifications similar to those developed by commercial food producers to make crops resistant to pesticides, had suffered damage to their immune systems.