Carrefour Leads Purchase of Non-GMO Brazil Soy

PARIS, Feb 22 (Reuters) - A pool of French pork and poultry farmers
and animal feed makers led by retailer Carrefour has signed a deal to
buy non-genetically modified soybeans from Brazil, a company official
said on Tuesday. The group will buy 180,000 tonnes of Brazilian
soybeans this year in support of Carrefour's policy of removing
genetically modified organisms (GMOs) from its products, said Gilles
Debrosse, director of fresh products. Carrefour has scrapped GMOs from
hundreds of own-brand goods ranging from breakfast cereals to
confectionery amid protests from environmental activists. It aims to
remove GMO ingredients from all its products by 2002.

"Carrefour, faithful to its principles of precaution and prevention,
is responding to the expectations of consumers who do not wish to eat
GMOs, directly or indirectly, and is anticipating regulations on GMOs
in animal feed," said Debrosse. Carrefour has hired inspection company
SGS to supervise production, crushing and shipment to ensure the
Brazilian grain is properly segregated to prevent any accidental
contamination, said Debrosse. Soybeans from 850 farmers in the central
state of Goias will be taken by truck to a dedicated crushing plant in
the town of Jatai owned by Coimbra, part of the Louis Dreyfus group.

The plant will produce 25,000 tonnes of soymeal pellets per month,
which will be carried by road and rail to the port of Vitoria in
Espirito Santo state, from where they will be shipped to St Nazaire in
northwest France by importer Soules-Caf.

Demand for Non-GMO Soy Rising

Buyers will pay a premium of 125 francs per tonne over the current
market price of 1,000 francs per tonne, said Debrosse. The impact on
retail prices would be negligible. Carrefour hoped to extend the
policy to its cattle and sheep suppliers and was considering the
states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul as future suppliers. "Our
potential with all our other order books, sheep and cattle, is for a
total 300,000 tonnes," he said. The companies participating in the
deal were Cooperl, Duc-Bourgoin, La Cana, Groupe Zaffani, LDC,
Fipso-Actalim, Guyomarc'h and Agralco-Ucanor Ouest.

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