Doctors for moratorium on GM foods

Medical experts under the banner of  ‘Doctors for Food & Bio- Safety’, have appealed for a moratorium on all open field trials of GM crops in India. The plea was placed before the bio safety regulatory authority Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC). The decision to appeal for the moratorium was based on an independent analysis that questioned bio safety issues related to the Bt brinjal produced by the Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Corporation Company (MAHYCO). The analysis had pointed out that technology used in the Bt Brinjal incorporating antibiotic resistant markers is likely to have disastrous implications for developing countries like India and may jeopardize national health programmes for control of TB and STDs. The team analysing the result has said that the Bt brinjal’s should not be commercially released.

Safety concerns for GM brinjal

GEAC will look into the merit of two recent international reports that say the Indian GM brinjal is not safe for human consumption. This happened after an independent analysis by a French laboratory questioned the bio safety of Bt brinjal, which is currently under field trial. According to media reports, Pushpa Bhargava, a supreme court-appointed observer to GEAC has said that a sub-committee would be appointed to look into these reports. Another independent study by the Australia-based Institute of Health and Environmental Research, also questioned the bio safety of Bt Brinjal. The study noted that the tests performed by Mahyco are insufficient to prove the safety of Indian GM brinjal.

Portion of animal feed grains from GM sources ---

According to an Australian report, more than 4,85,000 tonnes of GM material was used in animal feed in Australia in 2006-07. This represented about 5% of all feed grains by weight used in that year, with proportions varying across the livestock industries, depending on the feed mix used. It is estimated that the chicken/meat industry on average used the largest volume of GM feed grain in 2006-07, followed by the egg and dairy industries. The report, entitled ‘GM stock feed in Australia: Economic issues for producers and consumers’, was prepared by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics. The report commented on the situation in other countries, including New Zealand. New Zealand does not produce GM crops, making imports the only possible route for inclusion of GM ingredients in stock feed. In 2006, around 96% of New Zealand's soybeans and meal imports came from GM soybean-producing countries. Accounting for the proportion of GM soybean plantings in these countries, it is estimated that around 68% of soybean meal imports were GM.

Flood-resistant rice in line  ----

Scientists at the Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), are developing a rice variety with high tolerance to submersion under water for extended periods. IRRI has earlier produced three widely grown varieties of rice that are flood tolerant-- the Swarma and Mahsuri from India and IR64 in the Philippines. Three more flood tolerant varieties are being developed in Laos, Bangladesh and India. The new varieties are not any different from the originals, except for submergence tolerance, states the institute. These are designed to withstand up to three weeks of submergence and recover after flood waters subside. But opposition to this is also building up. The South East Asia Regional Initiatives for Community Empowerment, which campaigns against GM plants, said flood-tolerant rice should not be touted as solution to world hunger.

GM salmon may hit market soon -----

An aquaculture company in Prince Edward Island may have a chance to introduce its GM salmon in the market. The company has been waiting for more than a decade for approval from the US Food and Drug Administration. If the company gets the nod from FDA, GM salmon will be introduced for the first time in the world market. Normally it takes about three years to raise Atlantic salmon on a farm, but with genetic modification with genes from the cold-water Chinook salmon, salmon grow twice as fast. The company had first applied for approval 12 years ago, and began submitting documentation seven years ago.