In
This Issue:
APEC LEADERS
ENDORSE BIOTECHNOLOGY
Heads of government during the recently concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) meeting in China, endorsed the proposal by the US to establish a new
High-Level Biotechnology Policy Dialogue. APEC leaders are expected to "exchange
views and pursue cooperative activities on a wide range of issues relating
to biotechnology development, regulations governing new products, implications
for trade, and effective communications strategies." APEC officials plan to
hold the first session of the dialogue in Mexico City in February 2002.
Most APEC economies are developing domestic regulatory, trade, and scientific
policies to address the emerging field of agricultural biotechnology. For more
details on the endorsement, please visit the US Department of State's Office
of International Information Programs at http://usinfo.state.gov/
topical/global/biotech/01102101.htm
The APEC forum is the primary international organization for promoting open
trade and economic cooperation among 21 member 'economies' around the Pacific
Rim. For more, visit http://www.apec.org
ISAAA CONDUCTS
WORKSHOPS FOR PAPAYA AND IP NETWORKS
Researchers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam are
working at developing local papaya cultivars that are resistant to Papaya Ringspot
Virus (PRSV). In a few years time, they hope to produce local papaya varieties
suited for each country and make them available for small-scale farmers.
This optimism was voiced out during the Papaya Biotechnology Network of Southeast
Asia Technical Workshop and Coordination Meeting held in Vietnam on October
22-26, 2001. The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech
Applications (ISAAA) developed and brokered the project with support from Monsanto.
The network members are collectively addressing the critical aspects of product
development, effective biosafety and food safety regulations, product dissemination,
and product acceptance by growers, consumers and the general public. Sharing
of technology among the member countries are being encouraged through the use
of improved transformation protocols.
Technical presentations on papaya breeding were done at My Tho, Vietnam by
papaya experts Nguyen Minh Chau, Violeta Villegas, Chan Ying Kwok, and Robert
Paull. Participants then moved on over to Hanoi, Vietnam to present country
reports and plan future activities. They also visited papaya fields in neighboring
districts.
The first meeting of ISAAA-sponsored intellectual property/technology transfer
(IP/TT) management interns was held simultaneously in Hanoi City. ISAAA has
been sending SEA researchers to Cornell University in New York to strengthen
capability building on IP/TT management. In Hanoi, they presented their individual
country reports on the status of IP/TT in their respective countries. An outcome
of the meeting was an agreement to formalize a regional network on IP/TT Management
so that they could contribute proactively to its regional development. Upcoming
activities include a regional conference and electronic networking.
For more information on the Papaya Network and other activities, visit the
ISAAA website http://www.isaaa.org
IFPRI DIRECTOR
WINS WORLD FOOD PRIZE
Pinstrup-Andersen, director of the International Food Policy Research Institute
was awarded the 2001 World Food Prize for influencing global food policies
that have improved the lives of millions of people. In his laureate's address,
he said that rich nations should invest their money in eradicating the roots
of terrorism - hunger, poverty, and human misery.
He cited statistics showing that the income of world's richest 1% equals the
income of the poorest 57%. More than 800 million people go to bed hungry every
night and 166 million of them are children. "All that can be avoided by investing
in agricultural research, clean drinking water, primary education, rural roads
and irrigation."
He added that science and technology should be made available to the world's
poorest people to help them feed themselves - if they want to use it. "If biotech
crops are best for them, then the people in poor countries should be able to
choose to plant them," he said. The decision is theirs and opponents of GM
crops in rich countries should not tell farmers in developing countries whether
they should or should not grow these crops.
ENCOURAGING RESULTS
FROM POTATO-BASED EDIBLE VACCINE
The first human trials of a potato-based edible vaccine against hepatitis B
have been conducted and preliminary results are encouraging. According to the
vaccine's developer, Hugh Mason, plant geneticist at the Boyce Thompson Institute
for Plant Research at Cornell University, unpublished data reveal promising
levels of antibodies in volunteers.
The commercially available, injectable vaccine against hepatitis B is expensive
to produce and requires refrigeration during transport and storage. Plant vaccines
are cheaper, can be grown locally, and will bypass the need for needles, making
them suitable for use in developing countries.
Addressing concerns over the safety of GM food, Mason stresses that there will
be stringent controls on the growth and processing of plant vaccines to ensure
that they never enter the food supply. These will include greenhouse segregation
of medicines from food crops to prevent outcrossing, and separate storage and
processing facilities.
US SOYBEAN EXPORT
TO CHINA NORMAL DESPITE GMO RULE
Phillip Laney, country director for the American Soybeans Association in Beijing,
was cited as telling Dow Jones Newswires that US soybean shipments continue
to enter China without any difficulty despite confusion over the Chinese government's
new rules. He denied reports that 500,000 metric tons of US soybeans were not
allowed to enter the country. The rules, issued in June 2001, stated that all
imported soybeans contracted after 6 June are subject to strict inspection
and documentation. US soybeans were contracted before 6 June and as such were
not covered by the new rules.
NEW ZEALAND
GOVERNMENT TO END MORATORIUM ON FIELD TRIALS
Government sources were cited as telling Reuters that the New Zealand government
will end a 16-month ban on new field trials of GM crops. According to them,
the moratorium on the commercial release of GM crops into the environment would
be extended for 2 years, with a few exceptions for very low risk applications.
Announcement:
The online debate on "Biotechnology and Food: Voices from a Southern Perspective" will
take place on 31 October 2001 at 9am (Central European Time). More than 100
people from over 31 countries have already registered to ensure that their
voices are heard. The European Network University and Biotechnology and Development
Monitor, under the auspices of the Dutch parliamentary commission Terlouw,
invite you to join this unique online event.
http://WWW.SOUTHERNVOICES.NL
31 October to 1 November 2001 (first round)
6 November to 13 November 2001 (second round) |
