|
New Alarming Report on Hazards of Biopharming
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JULY 10, 2002
Contacts: Matt Rand, National Environmental Trust: 202-887-8800
Larry Bohlen, Friend of the Earth: 202-783-7400 x251
DRUGS AND CHEMICALS WILL CONTAMINATE FOOD
SUPPLY CONCLUDES NEW REPORT
More than 300 field trials of genetically engineered
biopharmaceuticals crops already conducted in secret locations nationwide
Washington, DC - A coalition of consumer and
environmental groups called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) today to prohibit a new class of genetically engineered food
crops that threatens to contaminate the food supply much the way
StarLink genetically engineered corn did in September 2000. In a
letter to the USDA, the coalition called for an end to open air
cultivation of crops engineered to produce prescription drugs or
industrial chemicals. The new crops, already planted in over 300
field trials at secret locations nationwide, include plants that
produce an abortion-inducing chemical, growth hormones, a blood
clotter, and trypsin, an allergenic enzyme. The coalition proposed
that the USDA permit only contained cultivation of non-food plants
under the same controlled circumstances as other drug production.
"Just one mistake by a biotech company
and we'll be eating other people 's prescription drugs in our corn
flakes," said Larry Bohlen, Director of Health and Environment Programs
at Friends of the Earth, a member of the coalition. "The USDA should
prohibit the planting of food crops engineered with drugs and chemicals
to protect the food supply from contamination."
The National Academy of Sciences warns: ".it
is possible that crops transformed to produce pharma- ceutical or
other industrial compounds might mate with plantations grown for
human consumption, with the unanticipated result of novel chemicals
in the human food supply." And the editors of Nature Biotechnology
recently warned: "Current gene-containment strategies cannot work
reliably in the field." A contamination incident may already have
occurred as one biotech company official noted at an government-industry
conference that: "We've seen it on the vaccine side where modified
live seeds have wandered off and have appeared in other products."
In a new report released today, the Genetically
Engineered Food Alert coalition details the threats that biopharm
crops pose, the extent to which they have been planted across the
U.S., the failure of regulatory agencies to serve the public, and
a set of recommendations. The report, entitled "Manufacturing Drugs
and Chemicals in Crops: Biopharming Poses New Threats to Consumers,
Farmers, Food Companies and the Environment," may be found at www.gefoodalert.org.
The majority of engineered biopharmaceuticals
and chemicals are in corn, a prolific pollinator. ProdiGene, the
company with the most plantings of drug and chemical-producing plants,
projects that 10% of the corn crop will be devoted to biopharm production
by 2010. StarLink corn, planted on less than 1% of total US corn
acreage, contaminated hundreds of food products and corn seed stock
with a potentially allergenic protein despite the use of gene containment
measures. Far from supporting containment strategies such as buffer
areas, Anthony Laos, ProdiGene's CEO, wrote farmers in 2001 that:
"We will be dealing with these distances until we can gain regulatory
approval to lessen or abandon these requirements altogether." Some
companies also propose extracting drugs or chemicals from plants,
then selling the remainder. Incomplete extraction would mean drugs
or chemicals in food or feed. "Farmers cannot afford another contamination
incident hurting sales and throwing the harvest into turmoil like
StarLink did in 2000" said Matt Rand, Biotechnology Campaign Manager
at the National Environmental Trust.
ABOUT THE GE FOOD ALERT COALITION AND GEFoodAlert.org
Genetically Engineered Food Alert founding members
include: Center for Food Safety, Friends of the Earth, Institute
for Agriculture and Trade Policy, National Environmental Trust,
Organic Consumers Association, Pesticide Action Network North America,
and the State Public Interest Research Groups.
Genetically Engineered Food Alert supports the
removal of genetically engineered ingredients from grocery store
shelves unless they are adequately safety tested and labeled. The
campaign provides web-based opportunities for individuals to express
concern about genetically engineered food and fact sheets on health,
environmental and economic information about genetically engineered
food. The coalition is endorsed by more than 250 scientists, religious
leaders, doctors, chefs, environmental and health leaders, as well
as farm groups.
BACKGROUND MATERIAL AVAILABLE ON WEB
The executive summary, the full report, the
letter with recommendations to USDA and a link to the ProdiGene
statement are located at:
www.gefoodalert.org
Source: http://www.organicconsumers.org/gefood/Biopharming0702.cfm
|
