Manila, The Philippines
October 1, 2007
By Jennifer A. Ng,
BusinessMirror
via SEAMEO SEARCA
The Philippines is looking to conduct a greenhouse trial on
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton before the end of the year,
officials from the Department of
Agriculture (DA) said.
Edison C. Riñen, a director from the Cotton Development
Administration (CDA), said the Philippines is just awaiting the
arrival of Bt cotton seeds from BioCentury Trans Gene Co. of
China.
"They are now ironing out kinks in their phytosanitary
certificate. Hopefully, before the end of the year, we can
already conduct the greenhouse trial," said Riñen on the
sidelines of a forum on genetically modified (GM) products.
The CDA official said the greenhouse trial, which would test the
resistance of Bt cotton seeds from a pest called cotton
bollworm, may last up until five months.
"After that, if the results of the greenhouse trial are
favorable, we will proceed with the field trial," said Riñen.
CDA, an attached agency of the DA, has been awaiting the arrival
of Bt cotton seeds from China since it was granted by the
National Committee on Biosafety of the Philippines the permit to
use the technology in November 2006.
Riñen said they are also now considering the possibility of
sourcing Bt cotton seeds for greenhouse trial from India.
Dr. Alicia Ilaga, director of the DA's Biotechnology Program,
noted that the Bt cotton propagation holds a lot of promise in
the Philippines, which imported as much as $85 million worth of
cotton at one time.
In terms of volume, Ilaga noted that the average annual cotton
importation of the Philippines is at 300,000 metric tons. The
imported cotton is mainly used by textile manufacturers.
"The ultimate goal is to let the production of our local farmers
displace the imports," she said.
Apart from displacing the imports, the Philippines hopes to
replicate the success of India not just in the commercial
propagation of Bt cotton but also in the export of the GM
product.
Figures from the United States Department of Agriculture show
that agricultural biotechnology in India has become the
third-largest contributor among various biotech sectors, with
total revenues of more than $229 million in 2006-07.
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