Technical Expert Committee seeks Moratorium on field trails of GM crops

The Supreme Court appointed Technical Expert Committee (TEC), while highlighting the possible disastrous consequences of field trials of Genetically Modified (GM) crops, has recommended to implement a 10-year moratorium on such trials on Bt. Transgenics in all food crops.

The interim report submitted by the expert committee suggested and discussed the following aspects in it: 

• The committee examined current overall status of food safety evaluation of Bt. Transgenics, including the data on Bt. Cotton and Bt. Brinja, and in accordance with the precautionary principle, the TEC recommends a 10 year moratorium on field trials of Bt. Transgenics in all food crops. Another factor is the possibility of contamination of non-GM food by GM food.

• Given the small plot size and relative lack of control in harvesting, storage, transport in India, it is likely that such contamination would be high.

• Organic farmers whose products need to be certified as being free of chemicals/pesticides and non-GMO would be particularly strongly affected.

• It pointed out that there was no mechanism for the payment of compensation to the farmers whose product could be affected and that there was no statutory method in place to address these issues. 

• Additional toxicity tests comprising long term and intergenerational studies should be added to the existing requirement that needs to be met before field trials can commence. It noted that the existing requirement stops at sub-chronic studies. 

The report illustrates one possible hazard posed by such trials, saying that “in 2011-12, India was the largest exporter of rice in the world. If the rice is contaminated with GM rice, then essentially India stands to lose the entire European market. The total value of rice export from India worldwide is about Rs. 14000 crore. If the value is small and much less than projected benefits, that is one thing, but if it is high then it could do grave damage. To the best of TEC’s knowledge this possibility has not been considered by regulatory bodies when allowing development of transgenic rice in India, which is presently in full swing and there are several applications before Genetic Engineering Approval Committee.”