Non-GMO school lunches: unable versus unwilling, has Ko P figured it out?

In response to a councilor's question about how genetically modified foods used in school lunches are inspected and controlled, yesterday Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je said during aspecial report at the city council that a non-GMO lunch policy "seems impossible to achieve," and that the policy would probably need to be revised. This remark by Ko P, that it "seems impossible to achieve," breaking his campaign promise, truly leaves us disappointed and regretful. Was such a one-sided decision to change a major food safety policy made after complete discussion? Did the city government team in charge of Taipei's school lunch policy ever put in the effort to understand the non-GMO issue, so as to provide the mayor with a reference for governance and for responding to interpellations? Could it really be that this was just an empty election promise paid lip service to?

In response to the councilor's question about the certification of non-GMO ingredients, according to Article 30 of the newly revised Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation, imported genetically modified food raw materials shall apply for inspection and declare relevant information in accordance with the dedicated customs commodity classification codes. Since last October, 10 items including GM and non-GM corn, corn kernels, soybeans, and soybean meal have each haddedicated commodity codes. That is to say, if schools and parents have doubts about whether ingredients are non-GMO, they can legally request, or specify in tenders, that suppliers must provide the dedicated import commodity code certificate for non-GMO food raw materials, as a basis for determination. Mayor Ko may be overwhelmed with numerous affairs, but surely the education and health departments and other staff agencies could not have failed to understand the legal provisions of the new Act Governing Food Safety and Sanitation.

In addition, compared with the other five special municipalities, Taipei's non-GMO school lunch policy clearly has no concrete measures. On January 21, 2015, the Tainan City Education Bureau, in official document Nan Shi Jiao An (Er) Zi No. 1040046227, required that "when schools handle lunch ingredient procurement, they should use non-genetically modified foods (soybeans and corn), and specify this in procurement contracts and ask vendors to provide inspection certificates." Taichung Mayor Lin Chia-lung adopted a subsidy of 5 yuan to encourage increased use of non-GMO ingredients in school lunches. Taoyuan Mayor Cheng Wen-tsan instructed that starting from the new school year this September, a "safe ingredients every day in school nutritious lunches" policy be implemented, subsidizing 5 yuan per student per week for ingredient costs, providing organic vegetables three days a week, GAP-certified produce one day, and non-GMO ingredients one day; Zhong Yu-ying, section chief of the Health and Physical Education Section of Kaohsiung City, which is responsible for school lunch affairs, said that the number of schools in Kaohsiung not using GM soybeans had increased from 153 schools in the 103 academic year to 252 schools in the 104 academic year, reaching a 97% achievement rate.

We may be able to understand that Taipei is not an agricultural production area, so fully non-GMO school lunches cannot be achieved overnight. But as long as Mayor Ko can promise to achieve it within his four-year term and propose a concrete phased implementation plan, we would all be very optimistic and willing to offer various kinds of professional assistance from the sidelines. However, today Mayor Ko so directly betrayed the voters' expectations from before the election, and without consulting experts, scholars, parents, or advocacy groups at all, abruptly and one-sidedly declared a complete reversal of major food safety policy in vague terms. This is simply too disrespectful to the promises he made before the election and to the parents who cast their ballots.

In the six months since the election, many local leaders, parents, schools, meal catering operators, and civil society groups have worked together, attempting to reverse the internationally scandalous situation in which school lunches largely supply "GMO feed soybeans." As mayor of the capital city, Mayor Ko's words and actions are watched by all, and announcing major policy declarations should be done cautiously; otherwise, with his public opinion influence, he could very likely wipe out in a single night the small achievements that people across the country have worked so hard to attain.

The School Lunch Non-GMO Action Team calls on Mayor Ko to carefully reconsider how to promote a non-GMO lunch policy. If any difficulties are encountered or any assistance is needed, we will not hesitate to provide relevant information and action strategies. Only this is the true essence of realizing open government and citizen participation.

Sponsor the [Non-GMO School Lunch Action Series Report] http://we-report.org/proposal/9448