September 30, 2010

 

Vietnamese scientists ensure food safety of GM crops

Crops such as corn and soy with modified genes are pest-resistant and give higher yield, but have no negative impact on human health or the environment.

 

Prof Tran Thi Cuc Hoa of Cuu Long Delta Rice Research Institute said the institute has transferred selected pest-resistant genes to several varieties of soy. The results showed that the transgenic lines had significantly higher pest resistance compared with non-genetically modified lines.

 

"The soybean is an important food plant in Vietnam, planted on 20,000 hectares of land, but with a low yield because of pests and plant health. The use of genetically modified [GM] soybean varieties is a feasible solution to increase production," she said.

 

In the Philippines, the use of GM strains has been used in corn, the second major crop in the country.

 

GM corn has had high yields across the seasons, generating positive differences of 4%-34% over the original hybrid corn.

 

This resulted in an income increase for farmers from 3%-75% during the wet season, and 1%-75% during the dry season, said Dr Reynaldo V. Ebora of the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB) College.

 

Ebora, director of UPLB's National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, said GM corn has generated a higher caloric content than conventional corn.

 

Another expert, Dr Nguyen Quoc Binh, deputy director of Ho Chi Minh City Biotechnology Centre, said pesticide manufacturing and spraying are not necessary to protect GM crops. Because GM plants are pest-resistant and not harmful to human health, there is no need to use pesticides.

 

Binh said findings show that worm-resistant transgenic plants have no negative effect on the environment, thanks to the use of Bt (Bacillus Thuringiensis) toxins that are produced within the plant and kill pests that attack the plants.

 

Ebora said his observations of six years show that genetically-modified Bt corn in the Philippines planted in fields does not adversely affect other varieties of corn crops in the fields.

 

Dr Duong Hoa Xo, director of the Ho Chi Minh City Biotechnology Centre, noted that the adoption of GM plants had occurred 15 years ago by some countries, and by last year, there were 124 million hectares of GM crops in 25 countries, with 45 million farmer households involved.

 

In the context of climate change, including changes like drought, acid soil, low or high temperatures and pests, GM crops will be the key to food safety, said Southern Agricultural Science Institute's Prof Bui Chi Buu.