More Rules Urged for Altered Crops
The federal government needs to do a better job of testing, regulating and providing more information about genetically engineered crops, the National Academy of Sciences said Wednesday.
In the first independent scientific review of government guidelines for genetically modified crops, a 12-member panel of the academy concluded that although there is “no evidence” that foods on the market are unsafe, government regulators need to investigate more thoroughly these crops for possible impacts on human health and the environment.
Genetically modified crops range from corn that has been altered to make it resistant to certain pests, to soybeans designed to be resistant to certain herbicides.
The panel also called for the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration to work together to provide the public greater access to this information, possibly through a Web site.
“Public acceptance of these foods ultimately depends on the credibility of the testing and regulatory process,” said committee Chairman Perry Adkisson, chancellor emeritus and distinguished professor emeritus at Texas A&M; University.
Currently, the USDA, EPA and FDA review scientific research submitted by companies to determine whether they will allow each biotechnology-produced seed to be put on the market. They do not require that research to be reviewed by outside scientists, however, and much of that research is not readily available to consumers.
“The government should have the testing of new products done by independent institutions such as universities,” said Dr. Per Pinstrup-Andersen, director general of the International Food Policy Research Institute in Washington. “While corporations will try to be honest, there is always the perception that the testing may not be totally unbiased.”
Pest-resistant crops developed through biotechnology have been sold commercially in the U.S. since 1995 and their use has spread, increasing last year to 70 million acres. More than half the soybeans planted last year, and 30% of the corn, was from biotech seeds.
But growing public concern over the safety of food made from genetically modified crops and the impact of this on insects and the environment provided the impetus for this review of the government’s 14-year-old regulatory policies.
This report was aimed at helping the EPA finalize its guidelines for pest-resistant crops, which have languished in review since it was first proposed in 1994.
However, the objectivity of this report was called into question last year when committee director Michael Phillips left to head the Biotechnology Industry Organization, a biotechnology trade group.
Although many environmentalists and consumer groups say the report is tainted by biotech firms, it should serve as a catalyst for stricter government oversight of genetically altered crops, says Rebecca Goldburg, senior scientist for the Environmental Defense Foundation, who served on the committee.
For companies such as DuPont and Monsanto, now a unit of Pharmacia, any additional regulatory research could mean new products will take longer to get approved, says Margaret Mellon of the Union of Concerned Scientists. However, biotechnology advocates say these recommendations would have little or no impact on the rate at which new products are approved.
“The academy just reiterated that these products are safe and adequately reviewed,” says Val Giddings, president of food and agriculture for the Biotechnology Industry Organization. “The agencies just need to do a better job of dealing with the public.”
The biotechnology industry earlier this week announced a counteroffensive to the attack on genetically modified foods, rolling out a $50-million advertising campaign.
Recent government reports show that farmers have begun cutting back on plantings of gene-spliced crops because of a slowdown in demand for them in Europe as well as a growing public outcry in the U.S.
Although the NAS report recognizes that there has been no evidence linking genetically modified crops to human health risk, it said there is the potential for “undesirable effects,” such as the allergic reactions suffered by some test subjects because of soybeans containing a gene from Brazilian nuts. This product was discontinued before it was released to the public.
