INTERVIEW - Standard GMO crop tests in the pipeline
Date: 06-Dec-01
Country: USA
Author: K.T. Arasu
Manjit Misra, director of the Seed Science Center and professor of agricultural and biosystems engineering at the Iowa State University, said the study was commissioned by the Geneva-based International Seed Trade Federation.
"The importance of the study was brought home by the StarLink incident," he told Reuters at the sidelines of a conference organized by the American Seed Trade Association.
Misra said he is part of the committee formed by ASTA to undertake the study that began a year before gene-modified StarLink corn, which is not approved for human consumption in the United States because of concerns it might cause allergic reactions, entered the food chain in September last year.
The detection sparked a recall of food items such as taco shells, and Japan, the top corn buyer, clamped down on imports. It also sparked a series of lawsuits by U.S. farmers claiming financial losses through loss of exports and lower prices.
There were cases when corn initially found to be free of StarLink was later shown to contain that variety during tests in Japan, which does not permit the use of the corn for humans and animals.
Aventis CropScience, the company that engineered StarLink corn, spliced with a gene to make it deadly to a crop pest, has since agreed to compensate farmers and agribusinesses which grew Starlink or whose corn was contaminated by the variety.
"We are developing standardized tests that would be acceptable in over 60 countries that are members of the International Seed Trade Federation.
"These tests would ensure we get the correct results, ... that there is no false positive or false negative," he said, referring to incorrect test results.
"These countries have come together and said that if there is a standardized test, it's to everybody's benefit. We have brought several seed laboratories, both from the public and private sector together and they are trying to develop a reference test that could be used by everyone," he said.
"There are exporting countries with a certain protocol and importing countries using a different protocol. If we have an international disagreement on testing protocols, ultimately the farmer is going to lose," he added.
He said there are differences in how certain countries and regions define genetically modified crops, adding that there should be "tolerance" levels that would allow a small amount of genetically modified crops in supplies of conventional crops.
"The objective is to establish a standard testing format based on science, and define what can be labeled GMO or non-GMO."
Misra said the work by the International Seed Network Committee was important because "GM technology is here to stay". "If we do not manage it properly, then we may lose the technology, or it might stall," he added.
He said the study was also backed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. "This is a joint initiative with the OECD," he said.
He said 22 laboratories from as many as 10 industrialized and developing countries were involved in the project.