New Government food safety rules could end up being unfair, expensive and bureaucratic, a leading North Yorkshire expert claimed today.

Gordon Gresty, head of North Yorkshire County Council's trading standards service, is urging councillors to press the Government for changes in proposed food labelling regulations.

The Government wants customers to be able to see if food they buy contains genetically modified ingredients, and predicted the changes would be welcomed by trading standards officers charged with policing them.

But Mr Gresty said the process would mean the onus would be on the consumer to make a request for information about foods, and trading standards officers would have to test the amount of staff training by making test purchases.

"The question arises as to whether or not any caterer can guarantee that food is free from genetically modified ingredients bearing in mind that there are exemptions from the labelling of small amounts and for additives produced from GM material. It would appear that the only sure way for the caterer to claim that food is free from GM ingredients is for them to produce the product themselves using ingredients and foods which do not contain soya, maize or additives.

"This causes considerable problems for local authorities to comply with the LGA resolution and may add significantly to cost."

He said the county had 3,500 caterers and 2,500 retailers and it would cost £100 each time a product was tested for GM ingredients.

Mr Gresty will ask a meeting of county councillors on Wednesday to warn the Government about the cost and difficulties of enforcing the regulations.

The Government is also in the process of setting up an independent Food Standards Agency, responsible for policy and advising Government on all aspects of food safety and standards.

Local councils have been asked for their views on proposals about how the agency would work.

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