By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Journalist
Less than a week after the pro life group, Children of God for Life, announced a boycott of companies associated with Senomyx, a biotech firm that uses aborted fetal cell lines to test their artificial flavor enhancers, a second company has announced that they have disaffiliated themselves with the firm.
Children of God for Life’s executive director Debi Vinnedge told Life News that in addition to Campbell Soups, Solae, a world leader in developing soy based technologies and ingredients, has notified her that it no longer has ties with Semonyx.
Solae spokeswoman Jennifer Starkey confirmed, “Thank you for contacting Solae with your concerns on this issue. Solae does not currently have an active relationship with Senomyx nor do we have any future plans for one at this time.”
“Our recent recognition by the Ethisphere Institute as one of the ‘World’s Most Ethical’ companies for the second year in a row signifies how seriously we take ethical business practices both at Solae and with our collaborative partners. While we cannot speak to what Senomyx may or may not be doing to test food flavor enhancers, we can confirm that we are not involved in this for our products,” Starkey added.
Vinnedge has been working for more than a year to convince Semonyx to stop using human embryonic kidney cells taken from an electively aborted baby to produce receptors to test food flavor enhancers because it’s unnecessary. They could easily use animal, insect, or other morally obtained human cells for this work, she said.
When repeated letters to the company failed to get a satisfactory response, she launched a boycott of companies that partner with Senomyx, which include Nestle, Pepsico, Kraft Foods, Campbell Soup and Solae.
Within hours of the launch of the boycott, Campbell Soup severed its ties with Senomyx. Juli Mandel Sloves, Senior Manager of Nutrition & Wellness Communications at Campbell Soup Company, told Vinnedge, “We are no longer in partnership with Senomyx. This fact was discussed during the Senomyx conference call with its investors earlier this month.”
Vinnedge said it took three letters before Nestlé finally admitted its relationship with Senomyx and company officials claimed the line of cells from abortions was “well established in scientific research.”
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