Dairy company, Arla Foods, says it only has ambitions, at this stage, that more of its farmers will convert to GM free feed based on the increasing market willingness to pay the higher price required.
There is a now a huge momentum in Germany to convert all private label meat sectors to GM free soy, said the German Association of Food without Genetic Engineering (VLOG).
Wiesenhof, the largest German poultry provider, is once again set to use GM free soy only, and anti-GM advocates say it is just a matter of time before the rest of that country's poultry sector follows suit.
There is still buoyant demand in Europe for non GM soy as a feed ingredient, despite some meat sectors in Germany, the UK, Denmark and Sweden debating the feasibility of retaining a GM free policy, says an industry insider.
Early next year could see a reintroduction of GM free soy feed into the German poultry supply chain if a working group involving poultry producers and food retailers can reach unanimity on the issue.
China’s involvement is critical in order to scale up the production of sustainable, certified soy and a leading non-profit group says an increasing number of dissenting voices within that country could see the Asian giant take up the gauntlet.
The Swedish dairy sector, mimicking the recent statements by the German poultry industry, is looking to migrate away from the use of non-GM soy due to the costs associated with sourcing the feed ingredient.
The German poultry sector’s claim that supplies of non-GM soy from Brazil can no longer be guaranteed is untenable, said the anti-GM lobby in Germany which is holding a ‘correction’ forum in April to inform the feed industry about the reality of soy volumes.
