“As a former Secretary of Agriculture, I have witnessed how science and technology—when paired with sound policy—can transform lives,” said Dr. William D. Dar, the board chair of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications, Inc. (ISAAA, Inc.),
“Innovation in agriculture increases farmer incomes, strengthens rural communities, improves nutrition, and enhances national competitiveness,” he further stated. “Agricultural biotechnology is a cornerstone of modern, resilient, and sustainable food systems.”
Dr. Dar said those words at the opening of a recent Kapihan session, titled “Conversation on Agri-biotech: A Kapihan Session with the HRep,” which convened over 40 members and staff of the House of Representatives and key agri-biotech players to discuss regulatory and commercialization barriers affecting the development and use of agri-biotech products.
Food insecurity
The issue of food insecurity is nothing new. In 1988, Robert Shapiro, Chief Executive Officer of Monsanto Corporation, highlighted the issue in his keynote speech at the annual meeting of the Biotechnology Industry Organization.
“Somehow,” Shapiro pointed out, “we’re going to have to figure out how to meet a demand for a doubling of the world’s food supply, when it’s impossible to conceive of a doubling of the world’s acreage under cultivation. And it is impossible; indeed, even to conceive of increases in productivity – using current technologies – that don’t produce major issues for the sustainability of agriculture.”
Concerns about lagging agricultural production and rapid population growth, as well as inadequate distribution systems, a lot of global organization have focused their attention on the concept of food security, which is defined as a “state of affairs where all people at all times have access to safe and nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life.”
Will that be possible – given the widespread erosion of topsoil, the continued loss of genetic variety in the major crop species, the uncertain effects of long-term agrochemical use, and the chronic hunger that haunts more than one billion people?
During his speech, Shapiro was anything but gloomy. Noting “the sense of excitement, energy, and confidence” that engulfed the room, he argued that “biotechnology represents a potentially sustainable solution to the issue of feeding people.”
“Biotechnology represents one of the most exciting advances in the biological sciences in this century,” said Reuben Olembo, of the United Nations Environment Program. “It will become a driving economic force in the coming years, helping to provide practical solutions to global problems of food supply, health care, energy waste treatment, and industrial regeneration.”
Bright prospects
In the Philippines, biotechnology is seen as one of the scientific fields that offer bright prospects for agriculture. Proponents believe biotechnology can fill basic needs for more food with fewer resources and less farm inputs.
Crops that have undergone biotechnology are referred to as transgenic, as they involve the transfer of genes from one organism – any entity capable of replicating its own genetic material – into the cells of another organism, specifically food crops.
Among the approximately 50 species that have been biotechnologically “transformed” since the initial successful gene-manipulation experiment in 1986 are rice, wheat, potato, cotton, alfalfa, asparagus, carrot, pumpkin, petunia, lentil, lettuce, pear, pea, sunflower, canola, and poplar.
In the Philippines, it is possible that Filipinos are consuming transgenic foods, such as potato chips, corn cereals, or soya milk. “Whether one loves it or hates it, transgenic food is poised to become a more significant component of our diet,” remarked an observer.
But all is not rosy, however. “There is much euphoria about development in biotechnology and about the benefits they promise to bring to society,” Olembo said. “But there are also risks and dangers associated with this technology.”
“Frankenfood”
The British press called transgenic crops as “Frankenfood,” named after a character (Frankenstein) created by novelist Mary Shelley.
“It’s now possible to do stuff that only writers could imagine before and build up completely new life forms,” said Greenpeace International, an activist group, in a statement. “The argument that we need genetically-modified food to feed the world is complete bull.”
Although health risks of eating “Frankenfoods” are still unknown, there are signs that they could trigger allergies and can cause resistance to certain medicines. There are also possibilities that they can affect internal organs.
There are also concerns about the possibility that bacteria in the human gut may acquire resistance to antibiotics from marker genes in genetically engineered plants.
Safe for human consumption?
The big question is: are they safe to eat?
“Foods produced using genetic modification are as safe as foods produced using conventional breeding techniques,” assures the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). “Genetically modified (GM) foods are as safe as other foods available on the market.”
The Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) declared that different GM foods go through the global food safety process called Codex Alimentarius Risk Analysis of Foods Derived from Modern Biotechnology under which these foods are not found to be risky to human health.
“GM foods currently available on the international market have passed risk assessments and are not likely to present risks for human health,” said the United Nations health agency in a statement.
“No effects on human health have been shown as a result of the consumption of such foods by the general population in the countries where they have been approved. Continuous use of risk assessments based on the Codex principles and, where appropriate, including post market monitoring, should form the basis for evaluating the safety of GM foods,” it added.
In 2016, 134 Nobel Prize winners wrote an open letter to the environmental organization Greenpeace asking them to ditch their campaign opposing the introduction of Golden Rice, a potentially transformative GM rice variety containing vitamin A.
