Premier Brad Wall asks federal leaders for position on GMOs

Premier Brad Wall says he wants to know where the leaders of three parties stand on genetically modified organisms.

The term refers to a broad category of agricultural products, including the genetically modified canola that is a mainstay of the Saskatchewan crop.

Wall said Monday GMOs was one of the topics he raised in a letter he sent to Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau.

The letter also featured questions about equalization payments and pipeline policy.

Wall said the GMO issue is important to Saskatchewan, too.

"I'm just concerned a little bit about GMOs, about the national position of parties on something that's vital to Saskatchewan — crop science, and the genetically modified technologies that we've been using successfully," he said.

Wall said he hasn't heard specific quotes from any of the parties about GMOs that he takes issue with. 

But he said he wants to know that the federal leaders' positions on GMOs are based on fact.

"There just seems to be a movement against these things," he said.

"It doesn't seem to always be fact-based and I'd like to hear from all three leaders that they endorse the kind of crop science, the kind of genetic research that we have been doing and continue to do so."

GMOs have been discussed in parliament in recent years.

Last year, the New Democrats introduced a motion in the House of Commons calling for the mandatory labelling of food products containing ingredients that have been genetically modified.

The motion was introduced by MP Murray Rankin (Victoria), who said people have a right to know what they're buying.