The results of the 2011 GM canola (rapeseed) volunteers survey conducted by citizens groups has been published. (See BJ October 2010 for previous survey results.) In this seventh year of the survey, GM canola volunteers have been confirmed in many areas of Japan. Far from being reduced, the volunteers are continuing to spread. In Fukuoka, Yokkaichi, Chiba and other locations, activities to uproot volunteer plants have been repeatedly carried out in an attempt to remove the genetic pollution, but the volunteer plants have been spreading at a pace exceeding these activities. Despite clear evidence that GM canola is already destroying local biodiversity, the state and local administrations are carrying out no effective measures.

Economic losses are also occurring due to the GM canola pollution. It has been reported that in Mie Prefecture isolated seed production of rapeseed has had to be abandoned. In Western Australia, an organic farmer lost his organic certification due to pollution from neighboring GM canola and there have been cases of organic farmers giving up on organic farming due to canola genetic pollution in Canada and the USA.

Results of 2011 "GM Canola Volunteers Survey"
Prefecture	No. of samples	Primary test
		Roundup resistant	Basta resistant	Double resistance
Hokkaido	50
Aomori	10
Iwate	18
Akita	1
Ibaraki	53	1	5
Tochigi	20
Gunma	21
Saitama	46
Chiba	62	4	7
Tokyo	38
Kanagawa	19
Niigata	26
Yamanashi	4
Nagano	5
Sizuoka	38	1	1
Aichi	18
Kyoto	37
Osaka	103
Hyogo	81	1	6
Nara	28
Shimane	5
Okayama	13
Hiroshima	6
Yamaguchi	19		2
Tokushima	15
Kagawa	15
Ehime	8
Kochi	10
Fukuoka	69	7	23	5
Nagasaki	5
Kumamoto	57
Oita	25
Miyazaki	5
Kagoshima	16
TOTAL	946	14	44	5
Compiled by the NO! GE Foods Campaign, as of 30 June 2011