HC Deb 18 March 1999 vol 327 cc814-5W
Mr. Steen

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what assessment he has made of the availability of organic high protein feed supplements for sheep over the lambing period; and if he will make a statement. [76795]

Mr. Rooker

[holding answer 17 March 1999]No specific assessment has been made. However inquiries have not indicated problems with the current availability of organic feeding stuffs for sheep.

Mr. Baker

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will estimate the volume of farm animal feed that has been consumed since the introduction of genetically modified material to such feed. [75106]

Mr. Rooker

[holding answer 8 March 1999]In total, about 20 million tonnes of animal feed were purchased in both 1997 and 1998 by livestock farmers for use on their farms, which included some 3.6 million tonnes of imported soya and maize products. A proportion of this would have been derived from GM crops. However, in the absence of crop segregation and specific labelling requirements, it is not possible to know the precise amount. In addition, farmers will have fed material from home-produced crops which would not have contained any genetically modified materials.