NGO queries the need for GM crops in India

Environmental groups are casting doubts over the biotechnology industry's claim about genetically-modified (GM) crops role in ensuring India's food security.

 

More than 180 GM plants have so far been field tested in several countries, but few have progressed to the stage where commercial seed is available to farmers, the non-government environmental network called Friends of the Earth (FoE) said.

 

''GM crops are also not feeding the world. They remain confined to about 2.6% of agricultural land worldwide, and 99% are grown for animal feed and fuels rather than for food crops,'' the organisation said in a report released this month.

 

Crop biotechnology proponents have described genetic engineering as a key tool to alleviate hunger through the development of plants with new traits such as drought-resistance and salt-tolerance.

 

India's agricultural minister Sharad Pawar had warned that India would not be able to combat food security challenges in the coming decades without the use of crop biotechnology.

 

But the FoE report points out that after years of research, only two GM traits -- herbicide tolerance and insect resistance -- have been successfully planted on a commercial scale.

 

The FoE has claimed that most GM crops are not grown to produce food for people, but to provide animal feed, agrofuels, and cotton. Somewhere between 60% and 90% of GM soy harvest is used to produce high protein soymeal for animal feed and vegetable oil. Some oil is used for cooking, but in Argentina, Brazil, and the US, significant amounts are converted to bio-diesel, according to the report.

 

The industry suggests that 99% of GM crops planted commercially are soy, cotton, corn or canola. ''In contrast, there are no commercial GM varieties of wheat, barley, rice, oats, potatoes, sorghum, or pulses,'' the FoE said.

 

''Some of the research on GM crops in India appears to be going on without real need assessment,'' said G.V. Ramanjaneyulu, an agricultural scientist and executive director of the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, who has been campaigning against GM crops.

 

He cited the example of a public laboratory in Hyderabad working on drought-resistant sorghum. ''Sorghum is one of the most resilient of crops in droughts. It's unclear why they're pursuing drought-resistant sorghum,'' Ramanjaneyulu said.