the latest URL friday NUMBER september NUMBER NUMBER NUMBER gmt NUMBER NUMBER uk zimbabwe eases gm stance zimbabwe has dropped objections to accepting genetically modified gm grain so that urgently needed food aid can be delivered says the un food agency the executive director of the world food programme james morris said zimbabwe s decision would send an important message to other countries in the region which have refused food aid because it might contain gm grain until now zimbabwe had said it would only allow aid workers to distribute ground maize to allay fears that gm grain could be planted but a zimbabwean minister says the government has now set up a system of checks to ensure the grain will not enter the eco system there have been fears that southern african nations could lose lucrative export markets in europe if they cannot certify that their crops are gm free aid mr morris announced the policy reversal after talks in harare with zimbabwean president robert mugabe the fact that they have now concluded that they are comfortable in accepting gm crops or commodities will be an important signal to other countries in the region mr morris told journalists it will enable us to do our job he said aid workers say up to NUMBER million people in seven countries in southern africa face famine in zimbabwe which was once the bread basket of the region some six million people are estimated to need food aid the wfp says it already has aid pledges for about half of the NUMBER NUMBER tonnes of food it intends to bring into zimbabwe in the next few months the government blames the shortages solely on drought but the government s campaign to transfer land from large scale commercial white farmers has worsened the situation say many donors lost markets the gm row has complicated relief efforts across the region zambia s president is refusing to overturn his ban on gm food aid labelling it as poison deals to mill gm food before being distributed so that it could not be planted have placated fears in malawi and mozambique united states aid officials deny that the food is unsafe pointing out that americans eat gm maize every day the world health organisation has certified the grain for human consumption and says it does not constitute a danger to people s health yahoo groups sponsor looking for a more powerful website try geocities for NUMBER NUMBER per month register your domain name http your name com more storage no ads URL URL to unsubscribe from this group send an email to forteana unsubscribe URL your use of yahoo groups is subject to URL 