Manila, Philippines
November 25, 2005
Christine A. Gaylican,
Philippine Daily
Inquirer via SEAMEO
SEARCA
The International Rice Research
Institute (IRRI) has presented new biotechnological
breakthroughs in rice research that may help answer growing
global demand for the commodity.
New rice varieties that can withstand droughts and soils with
high salinity - producing even higher yields due to its
disease-and pest-resistant genes - may ease the effects of a
worldwide rice shortfall expected in 2010.
"There are some of the new breakthroughs, especially the
completion of the rice genome, that spell the solution to
fragile economies that have rice as their major staple," said
IRRI information officer Duncan Macintosh, at the sidelines of a
gathering of rice genetic engineers and scientists from more
than 20 countries in Manila.
Based on the study of IRRI Dr. Mahabub Hossain, the area
cultivated with rice all over the world barely expand! ed in the
last 33 years to 149 million hectares. Thus, world rice
production only grew by 14 percent to 589 million metric tons
the last 13 years.
"The decline in global rice stocks has reached alarming levels,"
Dr. Hossain said in his study. "Water is getting scarce and land
has been diverted to alternative uses, narrowing down chances of
increasing rice production. The adoption of new plant type and
hybrid rice for the tropics is crucial."
The five-day rice genetics conference seeks to find a solution
to the tightening world rice production supply as large
economies like China have become net rice importers themselves,
thus, affecting the international price of the commodity in the
last five years.
"Rice importing countries like the Philippines and Indonesia
strongly felt China's presence in the world market this year
because rice process suddenly shot up by 40 percent to as much
as $320 per metric ton," Macintosh said.
China's progress is coupled with t! he increase of its rice
imports. The growing demand in china has put additional pressure
on the Philippines and other countries to acquire
self-sufficiency in rice production," Macintosh said.
He said the small countries could no longer rely on
international rice trade to stabilize their supplies, he added.
At present, the Philippines is now racing against China in
coming up with commercially viable, genetically modified rice
seeds over the next five years, said Philippine Rice Research
Institute director Leocadio Sebastian.
According to a report, China is applying the brakes to its plan
to produce the world's first genetically modified rice for human
consumption as concerns mount over safety, especially with
reports that illegal transgenic rice is already being sold in
some provinces.
Scientists and activists say that China's Biosafety committee is
unlikely to reach a consensus this week.
The government has added more food and environment sa! fety
experts to the committee, which would examine and make
recommendation to Beijing on four varieties of insect or disease
resistant GMO rice varieties.
"I don't think they'll come to a consensus," said Angus Lam, a
campaigner from Greenpeace in China. "There will be different
opinions. There has been some setback for GMO rice. It's not
moving as fast as we expected."
Early this year China, already the leading producer of GMO
cotton, looked set to approve commercialization of a GMO rice,
which would lead to the release of the world's first major
transgenic crop for direct human consumption.
Yet so far, Beijing has not given the green light to the disease
resistant Xa21 rice, recommended by the committee last December.
Scientist and activists said Bejiing was caught off guard in
April when Greenpeace announced that the unapproved GMO rice was
on sale in the markets in the central province province of
Hubei, one of China's major rice producers.
Greenpeace also found illegal sale of the rice in the southern
province of Guangdong in June, which it said showed the
transgenic rice was spreading across China and could enter
markets overseas.
Some of China's top trading partners, including the European
Union, Japan and South Korea, expressed concern about the
reports and they asked Beijing for clarification. With a
report from Reuters |