China assesses potential of GM rice for mass-production
23/11/2005 17:22
Rachel Hou/Shanghai Daily news
A panel of experts are
meeting in closed-session today to assess the potential risks associated with
the mass production of genetically modified (GM) rice. The assessment will
greatly influence the government's decision on whether to allow GM rice to be
planted commercially, today's China Business News reported. Held by the
State committee on the bio-safety of GM organisms, the session will last for
three days. A conference last year, which was held by the agricultural
authorities for the same purpose, ended with no GM rice being awarded a safety
certificate. Four strains of GM rice, three being pest-resistant and one
bacteria-immune, were submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture for
licensing this year. So far, no country has commenced the commercialization
of GM rice. Only four GM crops are widely-planted in the world, namely soybean,
cotton, maize and oilseed rape, none of which form part of the staple diets of
human beings. Since China is the world's biggest rice
producer and consumer, any government decision on this matter will create a
great deal of interest. Controversy has already arisen over the safety of a
strain of GM rice put forward for a license. According to the environmental
organization Greenpeace, the strain contains an insect-resistant gene called
Cowpea trypsin inhibitor (CpTI) whose structure is similar to a gene believed to
cause lung-damage in mice.
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