Manila, The Philippines
March 30, 2007
The Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI)
yesterday clarified that the strictest tests and most stringent
standards were applied by authorities on the
genetically-modified organism (GMOs) Corn MON863 before it was
approved for entry and cultivation in the Philippines.
BPI said in a statement that it approved the GMO "for direct use
as food or feed and for processing on October 7, 2003 based on a
stringent regulatory process and compliance of the applicant on
the terms and conditions set forth under
Department of Agriculture
(DA) Administrative Order No. 8, Series of 2002."
Joel Rudinas, BPI officer-in-charge (OIC) director, said that
contrary to fears raised by the international environmental
watchdog Greenpeace in an article that appeared in the Bulletin
last March 22, "the safety assessments were conducted based on
the context of international agreements like the Cartagena
Protocol on Biosafety, Codex Alimentarius and International
Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)."
In addition, stressed Rudinas, "Corn MON863 has undergone a
process of scientific and technical assessment. Under DA AO8,
the scientific evidence on the safety of the Corn MON863 was
examined thoroughly by an independent team of the Scientific and
Technical Review Panel (STRP) and parallel examination done by
technical personnel of the Bureau of Agriculture, Fisheries and
Product Standards (BAFPS) for food safety and the Bureau of
Animal Industry (BAI) for feed safety."
Earlier, Greenpeace claimed that the corn strain showed signs of
toxicity based on a study undertaken by a panel of three
independent scientists in France. The study, argued Greenpeace,
showed that laboratory rats fed with the GMO corn Monsanto (MON)
863 YieldGard Rootworm displayed kidney and liver toxicity.
MON 863 is corn genetically manipulated to produce its own
insecticide called "modified Cry3Bb1" to kill rootworm insects
in the soil, and contains gene coding for antibiotic resistance.
Rudinas said "the evaluation is rigorous and the BPI and its
partner-institutions ensure that only genetically-modified crops
that have been well studied and found safe to human and animal
health are allowed into our food supply and into our
environment."
Given these processes, the BPI director said "the DA upholds the
permit for Corn MON863, which allows the importation of the
regulated article for direct use as food, feed and for
processing. The department, however, shall revisit the risk
assessment for Corn MON863 if new data provide that the risks
have changed."
Moreover, Rubinas added, "the DA and its regulatory agencies
will continue to monitor all GM crops and products that have
been granted commercial approval to ensure that there are no
significant risks to human and animal health and the
environment."
Entitled "New Analysis of a Rat Feeding Study with a Genetically
Modified Maize Reveals Signs of Hepatorenal Toxicity," the study
was published in the scientific journal "Archives of
Environmental Contamination and Toxicology."
The study analyzed results of safety tests submitted by Monsanto
to the European Commission (EC) when the company was seeking
authorization to market MON 863 in the European Union.
The data shows that significant health risks were associated
with the GMO corn. Still, EC granted licenses to market MON 863
for consumption by both humans and animals. The incriminating
data was obtained by Greenpeace following a court case, and was
passed on for evaluation by a team of experts headed by Prof.
Gilles Eric Séralini, a governmental expert in
genetic-engineering from the University of Caen in France. |
|
