"Are GM foods safe to eat or are the health risks greater than those associated with conventional foods?" This is the question on the lips of consumers not only in Europe, but across the world. And there are others. Could the use of antibiotic resistance genes in GM plants lead to widespread resistance to antibiotics within humans? Could genetic modification of foods lead consumers to develop new food allergies? A UK organisation that seeks to communicate science, the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA), will attempt to address these questions at a science review panel in London tomorrow.

Evidence presented by leading scientists in the field will inform the science review panel, led by Professor David King, the UK government's chief scientific advisor, which is considering the current state of knowledge on the safety of GM foods .

Professor Derek Burke, former chair of the advisory committee on novel foods and processes, Dr John Heritage, from the faculty of biological sciences at Leeds university, Dr Clive Meredith, head of immunology at BIBRA International, and Dr Peter Lund from the school of biosciences at Birmingham university will all contribute to the discussion.

The science review panel is part of the UK government's national dialogue on genetically modified (GM) issues. In addition to the discussion on the safety of GM foods, the panel will also be addressing the implications of GM technology with regards to agriculture, environment, ecology, gene flow and non-food uses.

These issues, together with a public debate on GM technology and an economic study, will be addressed at separate events to be held around the UK and apparently the results will be used to inform the government and the public.