GM Food - Boon or Bane ?
Debi Mukherjee (India, 04/06/06)
Food is an integral part of life for all living beings. Foods meant for human consumption are generally recognized as safe provided due care is exercised during primary production, processing, storage, handling, distribution, preparation, packaging, labeling and marketing. Traditional or conventional food does not need any additional safety assessment as consumption of such food since ages without any adverse reaction establish their safety. It has also been observed that different traditional culinary practices have been developed region wise depending on food habits/dietary practices and such practices are meant for managing the risks, if any, associated with certain foods. This principle or practice can not be applied to foods inherent characteristics of which have undergone man-made changes.
All living organisms present in food have genes written in their DNA; this “genetic make-up” determines their characteristics. Genes are the chemical instructions for building and maintaining life. Genetic engineering (GE) is a relatively new technology involving the manipulation of genes by a process that transfers genes from one species to another, unrelated species. For example a gene can be transferred from an animal to a plant. This newly created genetically modified organism (GMO) will pass the genetic changes on to its offspring. Genetic engineering is a technology developed and sold by corporate interests. Currently it is applied mainly to industrial agriculture, with crops generally bred to be herbicide-resistant or insect-resistant. Food produced by this technology is commonly referred to as genetically modified (GM food). A few particulars relating to GM crops are:
The Global area under GM crops has been estimated to increase from 1.7 million hectares in 1996to 81.0 million hectares in 2004 (the same might have increased manifold by now). About 80 percent of the crops are planted in two countries, USA and Argentina. Together with Canada and Brazil, they account for 91 per cent of GM crop acreage. Remaining 9 percent is grown in China and Paraguay.
Globally over 15 important transgenic crops have been cultivated. These include maize, soybean, cotton, tomato, potato, petunia, rape/mustard, rice, wheat barley, beet, bengal-gram, papaya, cabbage and tobacco. The main crops are soy, canola, and cotton.
As per the report appearing in the Wall Street Journal dated January 12, 2005 Global planting of genetically modified crops continued to expand in 2005 but at its slowest pace since 1996, when US farmers sowed their first crop of genetically modified soybeans for sale in open market. Last year 22 million acres were added to the global pool of fields under biotech cultivation, raising the total to 222 million acres tended by 8.5 million farmers in 21 countries, said a report by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications, a nonprofit biotech foundation that works to get biotech crops adopted in developing countries.
Experts said some countries are nearing saturation in their use of herbicide –resistant and insect-resistant seeds and other countries hesitate to use the seeds because of health and environmental concerns.
About 90% of Australian cotton, at least 80% of US soybeans and 90% of soybeans in Argentina are genetically modified crops. Europe is one of the regions most resistant to the trend, limiting commercial biotech cultivation to about 100,000 acres in five nations. Emerging economics such as China, Brazil, Argentina and India are likely to be the greatest growth regions for the use of biotech foods, the foundation’s report said.
Friends of the Earth, an environmental group that believes genetically modified crops can be harmful to human health and the environment, attacked the report as “pure propaganda” for the biotech industry.
Most GM crops are bred for herbicide tolerance (72 percent) and other traits are insect resistance (19 percent) and combined herbicide tolerance and insect resistance (9 percent).
Ownership of GM crop technology is mostly concentrated in the hands of one company, Monsanto, USA.
[According to the Network of Concerned Farmers, these figures are to be treated with caution as the report on compilation of these figures is partly funded by GM companies.]
Scientists believe that genetic modification of plants and animals can help farmers to grow crops with benefits such as better resistance to disease and pests, and the ability to survive in extreme climates of draught and frost. It can also be used to develop crops of a better quality and flavour with higher nutritional content (e.g. more lycopene in tomatoes to reduce the risk of cancer). Crops can also be grown with fewer chemical pesticides leading to a positive impact on the environment.
There are two schools of thoughts on the safety aspects of food derived from such a process commonly referred to as GM food (Genetically modified food). Even the developed countries are having divergent views on the subject. GM producing and exporting Countries like Argentina, Canada and USA have taken the stand that these food should be taken at par with food grown normally as far as nutritional and safety aspects are concerned. On the other hand the European countries are having a cautious approach. The critics argue that present knowledge is not enough to ascertain the way genes operate to be sure of what the outcome of any modification will be. It is often worried that alterations could accidentally lead to substances that are poisonous, trigger allergic reactions or have an irreversible impact on the environment. Definite answer to this is yet to be known.
In the midst of divergent stand by the two groups of developed countries as often becomes apparent during the deliberations in the international forum of food standardization like Sessions of Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), a Joint body of Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and World Health Organization (WHO); the developing countries get puzzled. This is specially due to the fact that very little work has been done on this topic either scientifically or legally in these countries. They have no other alternative but to look forward at the recommendations made by the CAC on the subject.
India has been actively working in the field of biotechnology including development and evaluation of GM food under the aegis of different Ministries/Departments. Yet like many other developing countries, Indian food quality and safety legislation namely Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 (as amended in 1964, 1976and 1986) and Rules made thereunder are still to make a considerable headway on the entire gamut of GM food.
A beginning has been made recommending compulsory labeling of GM foods and products derived therefrom. A draft Notification has been published in the Gazette of India under the provisions of PFA Rules, 1955, for inviting comments from public vide GSR 152 (E) dated 10.3.2006 contemplating compulsory labeling of GM food. The draft rules further provide that import and sale of GM food in the country will be subject to approval of Genetic Engineering Approval Committee functioning under the Ministry of Environment and Forests. A period of 60 days has been given to the public to offer their objections/suggestions to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
It is high time consumers should rise to the occasion by making their views available to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to ensure that final rules on the subject do safeguard the interest of all of us.
