Who should carry the risk when new gene technologies enter our food and farming systems?

Organic Operators Australia has made a submission to the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR) calling for a regulatory framework that protects innovation — without transferring its risks and costs to farmers, consumers or the environment.

Certified organic operators are required to exclude gene technology outputs and meet auditable environmental management obligations. That makes traceability critical. If Australia introduces lower-risk regulatory pathways, those pathways should not make gene technology effectively invisible further down the supply chain.

OOA is calling for three practical principles:

Traceability — gene technology outputs should remain identifiable through Australia's regulatory system so farmers, food businesses and organic operators can make informed supply-chain decisions.

Accountability — proponents of gene technologies should bear the appropriate costs of assessment and regulation, rather than transferring those costs to industries seeking to remain free from those technologies.

Remediation — where contamination causes demonstrable harm, there should be an effective mechanism for remediation. OOA's submission proposes applying the established polluter pays principle rather than leaving affected operators to carry the loss.

This isn't an argument against science or innovation.

It is an argument for better governance of innovation.

Australia can support technological development while maintaining transparency, protecting biodiversity and giving farmers and consumers genuine choice.

For the organic industry, that choice depends on something very simple: if we cannot identify where a technology has been used, we cannot reliably choose to exclude it.

OOA believes proportionate regulation, transparent traceability and clear accountability can protect both innovation and the integrity of Australia's food and farming systems.

Submission to Office of the Gene Technology Regulator on gene technology regulation

Submission to Office of the Gene Technology Regulator on GM Multivalent Vaccine for Chickens