The source of GE contamination is also very often not reliably identified, making it difficult to prevent or detect future contamination. Underlying causes are usually revealed only if official agencies follow up cases. But, this does not happen in most of the cases. However, in New Zealand and Australia, incidents are followed up when detected and details about them are put in the public domain. Even in the UK, the detection rate is quite high. But, the USA presents a different picture. According to an audit report of the inspection of experimental GEO (Genetically Engineered Organism) releases by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), it was revealed that the site of field trials was not always known, information was lacking, and inspections had not taken place, with only one out of 12 drug producing GE field trials examined being inspected fully. The USDA report concluded that poor systems for post-harvest management could lead to drug producing crops accidentally entering the food chain.

Further, the economic costs of GE technology, because of litigations, can be quite high. Health, environmental and social costs are potentially immense. Countries are also not fulfilling their obligations under the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to inform the Clearing House of illegal trans-boundary movements of GEOs.

Keeping these things in mind, it may be said that it is high time that the world takes a number of steps in an expeditious manner to minimize GE contamination because, as the Report rightly says, the international nature of the crop commodity market and the companies selling GE crops means that an international response is needed to contain it. In fact, the Report has a number of important suggestions that, if followed, can go a long way in regulating and containing it. In the absence of a global monitoring system, the joint effort of Gene Watch UK and Greenpeace International to bring out this Report is indeed highly commendable and an important intervention by the civil society to make people around the world aware of this problem.

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