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Minister rules out entry of 'terminator technology'

November 8
Times of India

HYDERABAD: Union minister of state for agriculture Debendra Pradhan on Tuesday ruled out the entry of `terminator technology' into the country, saying that it would adversely affect the interest of the farmers.

Inaugurating a two-day national seminar here on `Transgenic crops and foods,' he said the terminator technology, which triggered a major controversy among the farmers, would also check the private sector from getting more value for investment.

"Such a technology will have a negative impact on the age-old systems like use of `farm-saved seed,' conserving bio-diversity for sustainability among others. Therefore, it would certainly not be in our interest," he said, and ruled out its entry into India.

Mr Pradhan said during the last five decades there had been a significant increase in the country's productivity and foodgrain production, including pulses, oilseeds and commercial crops.

Foodgrain production had increased from 50.82 million tons in 1950-51 to an all-time high of 203.04 million tons in 1998-99. This had enabled the chronically food deficit country to become self-sufficient, besides having 40 million tons in buffer stock and four to five million tons of cereals in excess of its domestic demand, he added.

The minister said though the country had been able to meet the challenges to her food security well, there was no room for complacency as there was a definite need to produce more food in the coming decades in the shortest possible time.

"Attention is now being paid to the development of transgenic plants having industrial, economic, pharmaceutical, nutritional and environmental importance. Field testing is going on many important crops such as rice, potato, tomato, cabbage, brinjal, rapeseed mustard, cotton, cauliflower and so on," he informed.

Earlier, Chief Minirter N Chandrababu Naidu paid rich tributes to the late Prof N G Ranga in whose memory the seminar was being organized by the city-based Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University.

The university has chalked out year-long programs to commemorate the birth centenary of Ranga, who had championed the cause of farmers.

State agriculture minister V S Rao said the Union Government had decided to bring out a postal stamp to commemorate the birth centenary of the farmer leader. A statue would also be erected at Guntur, his home town.

Japan ministry says accepts U.S. GM corn test plan

November 7
Reuters

Tokyo - Japan's Health Ministry said on Tuesday it would accept a U.S. Department of Agriculture plan for testing U.S. corn shipments to ensure they do not contain StarLink gene-spliced corn.

``We received a final protocol from the USDA last Friday and we have reached an agreement today with agriculture officials at the U.S. embassy in Tokyo,'' a Health Ministry official told a news briefing.

A Japanese consumer group has found traces of StarLink, which Japan has not approved for use in either food or animal feed, in food and feed products in Japan. The genetically modified (GM) corn is made by Aventis SA .

Expert questions cotton trials

November 7
The Hindu (India)

BANGALORE - An article published in the latest issue of Current Science has raised questions about Monsanto's genetically modified Bollgard cotton and the large-scale fields trials which have been permitted.

Monsanto's Bollgard cotton has been genetically modified to incorporate a gene from the soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis. Such Bt-cotton produces a protein which kills certain insects that feed on the plant, but is not harmful to other insects or animals. Consequently, spraying of insecticides, which are costly and environmentally harmful, can be greatly reduced. After two years of limited field trials, the Department of Environment's Genetic Engineering Approval Committee cleared large-scale field trials of the Bollgard cotton in July this year.

But Prof. Geeta Bharathan of the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the State University of New York, Stony Brook, in her Current Science article, has been critical of ``the science, project design and biosafety regulations underlying the decision that led to the adoption of the technology''.

The article has pointed out that in 1990, a Department of Biotechnology (DBT) committee, headed by Prof. V.L. Chopra, evaluated an application from Monsanto for permission to test Bollgard cotton in India. One of the grounds on which the application was rejected was that backcrossing an American cotton variety with a local one was rife with problems associated with traditional plant breeding programs. The committee felt it would be better to introduce the Bt gene directly into the local varieties.

In 1996, the Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company (Mahyco) applied for permission to import Bollgard cotton seeds and backcross the plants with local varieties. ``Apparently this proposal was more acceptable to the second DBT committee (of which Chopra was not a member),'' remarks Prof. Bharathan. Permission was granted to Mahyco to carry out the experiment.

Since India has the technical expertise to incorporate the appropriate genes into local varieties, what is the rationale for approving the project? Prof. Bharathan has also raised the issue whether two years of backcrossing are sufficient time to evaluate the stability of the new varieties to be introduced.

The cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera), a major pest of Indian cotton, shows wide variation in its response to the protein produced by the CryIAc gene carried by Bollgard cotton. So, resistance could evolve every quickly. The armyworm (Spodoptera litura), a pest next in importance to the bollworm, is probably even less susceptible. This raises many vital questions about the suitability of Bollgard for India. But ``detailed results from the two years of field tests are not available'', she has observed.

There are reports of research in Indian agricultural institutions directed towards introducing other Bt genes whose protein products are reportedly effective against the bollworm and the armyworm. Why introduce the CrylIAc gene into Indian varieties of cotton if it may not be optimal, if variability in response of the pest increases the chance of resistance evolving, and also enhances the risk of resistance to potentially more effective Bt genes?

Dr. Bharathan has also raised questions about the mechanisms in place for slowing the development of resistant strains among target pests.

The limited field trials of Bollgard cotton have been carried out on one-acre plots in some 40 locations during two seasons, she has pointed out. But a study of GM crop trials in the U. S. shows that even 100-acre trial areas are considered too small for safe extrapolation from field trials to large-scale cultivation. Are the limited field trials carried out in India adequate to justify approval of large-scale trials?

Firms sell corn to Japan despite fears

November 7
Reuters

Washington - Japan, the single biggest buyer of American corn, resumed its purchases with a 127,000 tons order days after the U.S. government agreed to begin testing to prevent StarLink gene-spliced corn from tainting exports, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Tuesday.

U.S. and Japanese officials spent two weeks negotiating a testing plan to satisfy Tokyo's demands that StarLink be prevented from contaminating any corn shipments.

StarLink, made by Franco-German life sciences firm Aventis SA, has not been approved for human consumption in the United States because of concerns it may trigger allergic reactions. Japan has even tougher rules, and does not allow StarLink in humans or animal food.

Japan -- a key customer for U.S. farmers facing another record corn harvest -- stopped its purchases after a consumer group in Tokyo announced on Oct. 25 that it found traces of StarLink in a corn flour baking mix.

The sale of 127,000 tons of corn by private U.S. exporters to Japan was announced by the USDA as part of its reporting of major export sales.

U.S. exporters are required to report to the USDA transactions of at least 100,000 tons of corn made in a single day to a single destination by the following business day.

A USDA spokesperson said he had no information on whether Japan planned to use the newly purchased corn for human consumption, livestock feed or non-food industrial uses.

In the United States, traces of StarLink corn were discovered in taco shells in September, unleashing a series of recalls and widespread testing by U.S. foodmakers. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is now considering a request by Aventis for a four-year grace period to allow StarLink-tainted corn to make its way through the American food supply.

Aventis contends StarLink poses no real threat to human health, and that new scientific evidence proves its safety. Green groups and other anti-biotech activists maintain that too many questions remain about the safety of StarLink for humans.

Japan, like a dozen other major countries, requires strict labeling on human food products containing genetically altered ingredients.

Japanese corn importers largely stayed on the sidelines in the past few weeks, closely monitoring the StarLink situation.

Some importers had even started considering seeking corn from other countries such as China, South Africa or Argentina, instead of U.S. corn amid increasing pressure from local food makes for StarLink-free supplies.

South Korea's agriculture ministry asked the nation's importer of corn for human food to make sure shipments are free of StarLink, according to commodity traders in Seoul. South Korea buys about 2 million tons of corn for food, mostly from the United States.

Japan buys about 4 million tons of corn each year for human food use, plus another 11 million tons for livestock feed.

The new sale of 127,000 tons of corn to Japan will be delivered sometime during the 2000/01 marketing year, which began on Sept. 1.

Monsanto calls on Friends of the Earth to provide data test results for public validation

November 7
Monsanto press release

Monsanto Company today called on Friends of the Earth to make available for validation the data and test methods used by its contract laboratory in alleging unapproved varieties of corn were present in specific food products.

Monsanto's letter to Friends of the Earth in the United Kingdom followed calls by U.K. food companies for independent validation of the data at the heart of Friends of the Earth's allegations and the U.K. Food Standards Agency announcement that it intends to investigate the validity of the claims.

"These products are safe. They've been approved by regulatory agencies around the world. However, we take any allegations about our products seriously, and urge Friends of the Earth to be forthcoming with the basis for their claims," said Hugh Grant, Monsanto's chief operating officer.

"Friends of the Earth has a public obligation to share their data and methodology because they have sought an audience through the media. We believe it is irresponsible to make these serious allegations and then be unwilling to allow independent verification of the results."

Sunday, Nov. 5, Monsanto announced its public commitment to make available any resources at its disposal to assist the food companies and regulatory agencies in investigating the claims made by Friends of the Earth.

All of Monsanto's biotechnology products have complete approval for both human and animal consumption by regulatory agencies in the United States, Canada and Japan, and they have been routinely processed and consumed with other products in those countries.

In its Nov. 5 announcement, Monsanto also committed to withhold commercial launch of biotechnology commodity crops for planting in the United States until they have received full approval for food use and animal feed in the United States and Japan.

The industry has a comprehensive channeling program for products that are still pending European approval, designed to allow U.S. growers to find domestic markets for these products. U.K. food companies have expressed confidence in the integrity of their supplies.

"One critical issue is that any identity-preservation program in a biological system - whether biotechnology-based, organic-based, conventional-based or other - cannot achieve a level of zero tolerance," said Grant.

"It is a well recognized and accepted fact in the seed-production industry that a zero-tolerance is neither realistic nor attainable. The regulatory agencies throughout the world need to eliminate the confusion that arises on these issues by adopting a common-sense standard for harmless adventitious traces in seed and food products."

Monsanto growth seen curbed by ag biotech furor

November 7
Reuters

Chicago - If there is one global company that has come to symbolize crop biotechnology, it is Monsanto Co.

But the maker of Roundup, the world's No. 1 herbicide, had managed to stay out of the glare generated by the StarLink corn controversy until this week, when an environmental group said it found the company's Roundup Ready corn in tortilla chips sold in British supermarkets.

The corn, genetically engineered to tolerate applications of Roundup, is not approved for sale in Europe, and Monsanto is challenging the group's claim.

Analysts say Monsanto, founded in 1901 by a chemist to manufacture saccharin, the first artificial sweetener, faces uncertain growth prospects as it stakes its future on agricultural biotechnology in the midst of a fierce public debate over the safety of genetically modified foods.

``Ag biotech, at least for the near future, is going to be much less attractive in the public eye and therefore investors' eyes, than pharmaceutical biotech. Ag biotech is really becoming the orphan sector,'' said Brian Halweil, researcher with Worldwatch Institute.

Monsanto's agricultural business last month was partially spun off from pharmaceutical maker Pharmacia Corp., renamed after the merger earlier this year of Pharmacia & Upjohn and the original Monsanto and its G.D. Searle unit.

Now 85 percent owned by Pharmacia after an initial public offering of the other 15 percent, the new Monsanto is focused solely on crop technology.

Since the IPO on October 18, shares of Monsanto are up a respectable 15 percent despite a difficult climate for new issues in a shaky stock market. Monsanto stock closed down 1/16 at $23-1/4 Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

The discovery in September of an unapproved variety of bioengineered corn, called StarLink, in Taco Bell brand taco shells has helped deflate expectations for ag biotech companies as it soon became apparent the tainted corn had spread throughout the food supply.

The StarLink corn, made by Aventis SA, is approved as an animal feed in the United States but not for human consumption because it contains a protein that could cause allergic reactions.

``It's setting back the industry in terms of commercial growth,'' said equity analyst Sano Shimoda, president of BioScience Securities Inc. ``Monsanto and a number of companies involved in agricultural technology were expected to create tremendous growth and profitability. The valuations of all those companies have come tumbling down.''

Monsanto raised $700 million in the offering, less than the $735 million to $840 million it had expected, and the shares were initially priced at $20, below the expected range of $21 to $24 per share.

The finding of StarLink corn in the taco shells, which were made by Philip Morris Cos.' Kraft Foods unit, touched off the recall of nearly 300 kinds of taco shells, tortilla chips and tostadas from U.S. grocery stores due to suspected contamination.

``Suddenly people like my grandparents have heard about agribiotech because the corn made it into some brand names,'' said Halweil.

Monsanto, for its part, sees its mission as one of educating consumers that its products are healthy, safe and of the highest quality, said company spokeswoman Scarlett Foster.

``It doesn't mean that we don't have a challenge, but the widely accepted belief that consumers are up in arms is inaccurate,'' Foster said.

Monsanto's image was tarnished in the 1960s when it produced PCBs, chemicals used in lubricants and coolants that were found to be carcinogenic and banned, and Agent Orange, a toxic defoliant used by American troops during the Vietnam War.

Analysts said Monsanto remains dogged by a reputation for arrogance, especially in Europe, formed in the biotech industry's early days.

``The attitude was, we'll supply the product and you'll eat it,'' said Nick Young, chief executive of consulting firm Promar International. ``There generally wasn't an appreciation that Europe would dig its heels in.''

In the long haul, Monsanto and the ag biotech industry will benefit from development of gene traits that provide health benefits, such as lowering fatty acids or increasing plant estrogens known as isoflavins, that form the basis of so-called ``functional foods,'' analysts said.

``The storm clouds are overhead. They are black. The question is, when will they see sunshine? The issues are very difficult to resolve because you are dealing with perceptions,'' Shimoda said.

StarLink tests should lift SDI's revenues

November 6
Reuters

Chicago - Strategic Diagnostics Inc. (SDI), which last week was selected by the U.S. Agriculture Department to supply tests to detect gene-modified corn, said fourth quarter revenues could be up 25 percent from the third quarter because of a boom in sales.

SDI's test for StarLink is the only one so far that has been evaluated and cleared by the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA), a unit of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. GIPSA said the test was effective in detecting StarLink corn.

The StarLink test is one of many analytical tests the Newark, Delaware-based company makes for food and water use, but recent concerns about StarLink corn in food has raised demand for the test.

SDI has sold about 600,000 of the $5.75 StarLink tests this past month into the private sector and should be able to fulfil USDA's order when it is received.

``At the current production we expect to stay ahead of the game,'' said Richard Birkmeyer, SDI chief executive officer. ``We have the ability to produce 60,000 a day.''

On Monday, Lansing, Michigan-based Neogen Corp., which already has tests to detect toxins on grain, said it has released tests that can quickly and easily detect StarLink corn as well as other genetically modified varieties.

SDI said sales of the StarLink tests should contribute to an expected 25-percent increase in fourth quarter revenues compared with the $5.7 million it reported for the third quarter ended Sept. 30.

Fourth quarter earnings should top the 1 cent per share reported in the third quarter, the company said.

As of Monday, USDA had not placed an order with SDI for StarLink tests, but an order was expected soon. SDI chief operating officer Arthur Koch said he did not know how many tests USDA will need.

The USDA said on Friday that it will use SDI's tests to check corn headed to Japan and that testing would begin about Nov. 15. Japanese buyers have said they do not want StarLink corn in their shipments.

StarLink is a genetically modified corn produced by the European firm Aventis SA . In 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency approved the variety as livestock feed only. The corn has not been approved for human food use because tests have shown it can cause allergic reactions.

But StarLink has slipped into the food chain, resulting in a nationwide recall of taco shells in September. The recall prompted many food companies to set up tests for StarLink to ensure none makes it into their products.

SDI's StarLink tests are sold in kits of 100 tests each. Grain dealers must crush the corn and mix it with a water-based solution. A test strip, similar to those used in home pregnancy tests, is inserted into the mixture and in five minutes will show if StarLink is present.

The strips are sensitive enough to detect one kernel of StarLink corn in a batch of 1,000 kernels, said Birkmeyer.

Although Aventis has stopped selling the corn, Birkmeyer said testing may be needed for a few years.

``The expectation is that you are going to need testing for a minimum of two years and probably more like four years. It will take a long time to completely purge all of the grain that is existing today,'' he said.

The StarLink test is one of many made by SDI. The company supplies tests that detect other genetically modified varieties. It also is currently working with bioscience companies such as Monsanto Co., Aventis, and Novartis AG to create tests that will detect genetically modified crop varieties still in development.

Shares of SDI, traded on Nasdaq, were up 1/16 at $4-9/16 on Monday. The 12-month high was $9-5/8 and low was $2-1/8.

Govt loosens control over genetic food trials

November 6
AAP (Australia)

The commonwealth has loosened its controls over genetic food and plant trials by conceding the states and territories important opt-out rights.

The Tasmanian government, which has been leading the push for stronger rights under the proposed federal Gene Technology Bill, said Monday the states and territories could now determine their own future on genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

Primary Industries Minister David Llewellyn said the bill, which is expected to go to the Senate this week, would be amended to comply with a deal reached between state and federal officials in Canberra last week.

The deal ends a standoff between Tasmania and the federal government since the state unilaterally declared a 12-month moratorium of dubious, though unchallenged, constitutional validity on GMO trials while it conducts its own inquiry.

Under the agreement, the federal Gene Technology Regulator (which will be created by the bill) will be obliged to take account of state or territory submissions opposing a GMO release on environmental grounds.

States and territories also would have the right to appeal against a determination of the regulator to the Administrative Decisions Judicial Appeals Tribunal.

Beyond that, Mr Llewellyn said the states and territories had the right to opt out of commodity-specific GMO releases, or releases in specific zones, on marketing grounds.

He said that while there were still some points requiring clarification and the exact wording of the amendments had not been completed, he believed the deal could enable Tasmania to be GE-free if that was what its government decided after its inquiry was completed.

A spokeswoman for federal Health Minister Michael Wooldridge confirmed the agreement had been reached.

She said it gave the states more powers within a federal framework.

However some of the processing for declaring GE-free zones on marketing grounds were still being worked out.

"It will be a tight process," she said.

"We don't want it to be abused and it won't be open slather."

Gene-altered corn keeps Iowa grain inspectors busy

November 5
Reuters

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (Reuters) - Coffee breaks have been few and far between for grain inspectors Tom Sloan and Jay Lynch ever since an unapproved, gene-altered corn was discovered in the food chain more than a month ago.

A steady stream of the corn that is not approved for human consumption has been flowing into their testing facility on the fringe of one of the largest corn processing plants in the United States owned by agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland Co.

``We have been picking up eight to 10 trucks a day this week with StarLink contaminated corn,'' Sloan said, in between putting his face into bowls of corn to check for odors.

``It used to be 10 to 12 a day trucks in October,'' he said. ''A four-man job is now a six-man job,'' he said, referring to the additional staff his company, Mid-Iowa Grain Inspection Inc., had to hire to cope with the tests that include checks for insects, disease, rocks and odors.

The buzz at the inspection facility highlights the fear that has gripped the grain and food industries since Philip Morris Cos.' Kraft Foods unit voluntarily recalled Taco Bell-brand taco shells from store shelves in late September after they were discovered to contain StarLink corn.

Since then, 300 kinds of taco shells, tortillas, chips and tostadas have been recalled from U.S. grocery stores and restaurants because of StarLink contamination, the U.S. government has said.

StarLink corn, produced by European pharmaceutical giant Aventis SA, is not allowed by U.S. regulators for human consumption and the company has been buying up the corn from farmers to ensure it is kept out of the food chain.

Aventis acknowledged last week that about 12 percent of this year's StarLink crop, or 9.6 million bushels, had been commingled into the food chain.

Of the 340,908 acres (138,000 hectares) of StarLink corn planted this year, Iowa had the most with 134,910 acres (54,590 hectares).

It is possible that as much as half of the corn stored in Iowa may contain traces of StarLink, an Iowa State University professor, Charles Hurburgh, predicted this week.

There are fears that some StarLink corn, which contains a protein that might trigger allergic reactions in people, may have left American shores.

Japan is the top importer of U.S. corn, and a Japanese consumer group had said traces of the corn were found in food products sold in the country, prompting authorities to request that the United States not to ship corn tainted with StarLink to Japan.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said on Friday it will begin testing corn bound for Japan for StarLink. Japan buys about four million tons of corn annually for human food use, and about 11 million for animal feed.

Most of the corn is purchased from the United States, accounting for nearly one-third of all U.S. corn exports.

Mike Polaski, co-owner of Mid-Iowa Grain Inspection Inc., designated by the USDA as a grain inspection company, said: ''There's still a lot more StarLink out there. But I don't think farmers are commingling the corn intentionally.''

He added that farmers and grain elevators from within a 100-mile (161 km) area bring their corn to his facility for testing.

The tests begin with a grain inspector inserting a hydraulic probe into the corn for samples.

To test for StarLink, some of the sample corn is ground using a coffee grinder, mixed with a prescribed amount of water that is drained into a test-tube and inserted with a strip that will show whether the sample is contaminated or not.

``It is very much like a pregnancy test,'' Polaski said, as he dumped negative samples into the trash can.

He said his facility began testing for StarLink at the request of Archer Daniels Midland, adding that he is charging the company an additional $5 per truck for the test.

His brother and company co-owner, Jeff, said ADM had supplied them with 15,000 test kits produced by Strategic Diagnostics Inc., adding that they have used about 6,000 of them.

Corn that passes the StarLink test heads into the sprawling ADM plant nearby that processes corn for use in food products.

Corn that fails the test is usually diverted to feed uses at deep discounts, causing farmers or grain elevators from whom the grain originated to take hefty losses.

The ADM plant employs some 250 people and has the capacity to process 430,000 bushels of corn a day.

``Our operations have not been affected by the StarLink problem because of Mike and his group,'' plant manager Doug Brakhahn said, referring to the grain inspection facility.