In
This Issue:
CDC:
No Evidence of Allergy Due to Starlink Corn
There
is no evidence that allergic reactions in consumers were caused by
food products containing traces of Starlink biotech corn variety.
This was reported by the US Centers for Disease Control in their
website http://www.cdc.gov.
CDC's
investigation did not find any evidence that "hypersensitivity
to the Cry9c protein was responsible for the self-reported allergic
responses that people experienced last fall." The Center explained
that the Cry9C protein breaks down slowly in the digestive system,
indicating that it might induce allergic reactions. However, scientists
say people would have to be exposed to the protein repeatedly to
become sensitive to it.
In reaction
to this development, Val Giddings, vice president for food and agriculture
of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) noted that the Centers'
data are consistent with those they already had. "The data are
compelling and should be instrumental in providing the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) the final piece of necessary information
to support granting Aventis' request to set a tolerance level for
any minute amount of Cry9c that may be found in the food chain." ¨
Increase
in China's Cotton Area
China
expects to increase its total planted area to cotton by 17-20% with
production rising to 4.75 MMT. This forecast comes even with the
central government's efforts to keep production stable. Cotton production
has become attractive due to high cotton prices and falling production
costs, the latter attributed to increased use of GM cotton. The 2001
crop is predicted to be the largest since 1995.
About
3 million small farmers planted 300,000 hectares of Bt cotton in
1999. This went up to 500,000 in 2000. Monsanto's Bt cotton covered
about 240,000 hectares with the rest being Bt cotton produced by
Chinese companies. ¨
Biotech
Regulations to Help China's Genetic Research
China's
new regulations on genetically modified crops could be used to improve
trade now that it is set to enter the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The US and China reached a deal recently to speed up the latter's
entry into the WTO.
The new
regulations published on June 7 is China's first attempt to regulate
genetic engineering. They include a total of 56 articles, and give
specific details about research, development, processing and the
trading of GM plants, animals and microbes. Rules require biotech
crop growers to conduct production field tests and require state
approval of applications for bio-engineered crops, which could take
up to 270 days. Till now, genetically improved crops has to pass
lab tests, pilot field runs and then go on to environmental release
before they could go commercial. There is an additional step of a "production
trial" before commercialization.
The country's
work with genetics has been hampered by its inability to commercialize
research findings. The guidelines will now allow it to offer financial
support to its most promising companies. In addition, China might
then be able to do research and produce seeds that can be used all
over China and possibly, for export as well.
Singapore's
Scientists Develop GM Banana
Bananas
need not arrive in markets overripe. Scientists at the National University
in Singapore have developed a system that delays ripening of banana
by up to four months. Strait Times reports that a team of researchers
have cloned and modified the genes which fruits and plants use to
produce ethylene, the gas that causes ripening.
Pua Eng
Chong, associate professor of the biological sciences department
is quoted to have said that the modified banana produced 90% less
ethylene. "By stopping ethylene production in the fruit, we
can do away with refrigeration and still get the bananas to market
before they are overripe," he stated. This could mean significant
savings in the 1.5 billion US dollar a year industry.
Eng clarified
that they still need another two years before the technique for bananas
will be perfected.
GM
Trials Must Continue, Says EU's Currie
Jim Currie,
the director general of the European Union's (EU) environmental department,
believes that trials of genetically modified crops must continue.
In a statement to The Scotsman, he stressed that "We take the
view that we need to get a GM balance based on the precautionary
principle - legislation in place to look at the science, continue
to monitor, while recognizing that there is no demonstrable proof
that they are harmful."
Currie
added that the present EU moratorium on new GM products must be broken
otherwise biotech companies will leave. "We have to respond
to genuine concerns of people about what might happen, what might
prove to be harmful, but to have measures in place which can respond
to any new knowledge."
In related
developments, David Byrne, EU's top consumer protection official,
expects the EU to present new proposals for regulating genetically
modified foods this month. In February, the European Parliament approved
new rules on labeling and monitoring GM food.
Over in
Switzerland, The Swiss Senate has rejected a proposal to introduce
a moratorium on the commercial use of GM plants. However, it said
strict scientific and environmental controls needed to be imposed.
The House of Representatives has still to discuss the issue.
Sri
Lanka Moves GM Food Ban to September
Agence
France-Presse reports that Sri Lanka has deferred a ban on the import
of genetically modified (GM) food that was supposed to have taken
effect on May 1. S.R. Balachandran, of the National Chamber of Commerce,
said that traders have asked for more time to comply since they had
to clear food that had already been ordered when the ban took effect.
Sri Lanka's
ban on GM food applies to all imports of raw and processed food in
21 categories. To comply with the ban, importers must obtain proof
from exporting countries' health authorities that their products
are non-GM.
Both GM
preservatives and additives are blacklisted, along with genetically
modified soyabeans and tomatoes, potatoes, corn or corn flour, beet
sugar, yeast and cheese.
Meanwhile,
before the ban takes effect in September, the government will launch
an awareness campaign on GM food.
No
Difference in Animals Fed With GM/Non-GM Corn
Jimmy
Clark, professor of ruminant nutrition at the University of Illinois
at Urbana-Champaign, reports that eating meat, milk and eggs from
animals fed with genetically modified corn should be as safe as products
derived from animals fed on traditional animal feed. He reviewed
results from 23 research experiments conducted over the last four
years at universities in the US, France and Germany. They confirmed
that there is no significant difference between animals raised on
feed containing GMO ingredients and animals maintained on traditional
feed.
Clark
averred that "nutrient composition (between the two groups)
was substantially equivalent. The digestibility of the meat animals
was the same." Animals who ate GM corn and soybeans showed no
difference in weight gain, efficiency, milk composition or overall
health when compared with animals fed traditional feed. |
