The Ministry of Agriculture's recent process of issuing production and application safety certificates for two genetically modified rice strains has intensified unease regarding the safety of GM food.
The process was highly secretive: when a foreign news agency first discovered the news, it was posted on a specialized website that was “almost rarely updated,” buried among the “2009 Second Batch of Agricultural Genetically Modified Organism Safety Certificate Approval List,” and even Greenpeace staff who checked the site almost daily had not noticed it.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
The safety certificate was issued by the body formally known as the “Ministry of Agriculture Agricultural Genetically Modified Organism Safety Management Office.” The recipients were the insect-resistant transgenic rice “Huahui No. 1” and its hybrid “Bt Shanyou 63,” developed by the National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement at Huazhong Agricultural University. The certificate took effect on August 17, 2009, with a validity period of five years. Accordingly, these two rice strains would be permitted to be planted on a large scale within Hubei Province.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Regarding the certificate issuance process, the Ministry of Agriculture provided only a brief written response. According to this response, the certificate was issued “after years of safety evaluation through five stages—strict experimental research, intermediate testing, environmental release, productive testing, and application for production and application safety certificates—and based on the evaluation results of the Agricultural Genetically Modified Organism Safety Committee.”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
This response drew public attention to the “Agricultural Genetically Modified Organism Safety Committee,” an institution that sounded highly specialized.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
There is considerable evidence demonstrating the importance of this committee. According to available information, it was established pursuant to the “Regulations on the Safety Management of Agricultural Genetically Modified Organisms,” and its members are experts "engaged in research, production, processing, inspection and quarantine, health, environmental protection" and other fields related to agricultural GMOs, with each term lasting three years. When the previous committee transition took place, Xinhua News Agency specifically issued a release about it.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
However, people quickly discovered that this massive body with dozens of members was virtually inaccessible to ordinary citizens. Although many people worked hard to find out the identities of its members, and the internet was filled with various inquiries and probes, no results were obtained. Even the earliest date of the committee's establishment was difficult for outsiders to ascertain.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Jiang Gaoming, a principal investigator at the Institute of Botany of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, believes that as the final step before the issuance of safety certificates for GM crop production, the committee's role should not be underestimated, and that this certificate is “the most difficult hurdle to overcome before a GM crop can be marketed.” If anyone could guarantee that GM food would not pose problems, then “we request that the names of these experts be made public.”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
This request went unheeded. Jiang felt that all of this “was backroom dealing,” and he believed this indicated that the people involved “themselves were not confident” about GM rice.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Greenpeace staff spent a great deal of time searching for information about this committee. In the end, they only found a news article on the campus website of China Agricultural University revealing that five researchers from that university had been appointed as members of the third-term Biosafety Committee.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Fang Lifeng, the official in charge of agriculture programs at Greenpeace, felt that the entire community related to GMOs had fallen silent. This silence became a focal point of public questioning.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
As a civil society organization, Greenpeace has consistently and strongly opposed the cultivation of GM food crops. “We have always hoped that information concerning people's lives and safety should be made public. Even if people cannot make decisions, they should at least have the right to know,” the organization explained its position.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
In contrast to the activism of civil society organizations, the government agencies and researchers involved appeared extremely low-key.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Jiang Gaoming was one of the few experts willing to publicly state his position. His research field is unrelated to GM technology—it is ecological agriculture—which made Jiang feel somewhat awkward, because those who should have been speaking out “were far too quiet.”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
“Since the safety issues surrounding GM food remain debated to this day, the approval of GM rice should at least be transparent.” He repeatedly appealed through his blog and published articles. However, he received no feedback whatsoever, whether in agreement or opposition.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
In fact, after the media had repeated various doubts several times, a Ministry of Agriculture staff member said over the phone that “now the major media, ministry-affiliated media, and local media have all stopped hyping this matter.”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Behind the calls for the right to know and information disclosure lies a deep-seated anxiety about GM food that has always existed. People worry about whether genetically modified crops, after being consumed by humans, might have “unforeseeable” consequences.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
The newly certified “Bt Shanyou 63” transgenic rice is believed to be capable of killing insects and controlling pests. In response to this characteristic, the most common attack online begins like this: If even insects cannot eat it, can humans eat it?文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
This doubt has been addressed by professionals. A researcher at the China National Rice Research Institute stated that the gene that causes insect death targets a protein encoded by a gene specific to certain insects and would not harm humans.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
To prove the harmlessness of this crop, even before obtaining the safety certificate, Lin Yongjun, a researcher at Huazhong Agricultural University who participated in the research, had stated that for this transgenic rice, they had conducted toxicological tests on mice, rats, and other animals, and no problems had been found.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
This argument also drew attacks online. One doubt was: “Can you treat humans like mice?”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Despite not possessing complete scientific information, people were still unable to dispel their anxiety about this man-made crop. Many people online regarded the approval of GM rice production as “scientific research” breaching the “moral bottom line” and felt worried about their own health.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
In fact, regarding whether GM crops pose dangers, the scientific community both domestically and internationally has never reached a definitive conclusion. Contradictory evidence continues to emerge. Opponents cite reports from foreign scientists stating that in experiments, young rats that consumed GM potatoes suffered damage to their internal immune systems. But supporters“ experimental results were the opposite, showing ”no damage whatsoever."文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Conservative countries and regions, such as the European Union, strictly restrict the cultivation and import of GM crops because scientists cannot provide evidence proving that GM crops are indeed harmless. In countries such as the United States and China, because opponents likewise cannot provide evidence confirming that GM crops are harmful, policies have tended toward promoting GM crops.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Previously, GM crops such as tomatoes, cotton, and soybeans had already been widely promoted in China and had at one time achieved remarkable results in pest control and other areas. But for staple food crops such as rice, almost all countries have adopted a cautious attitude.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Yuan Longping, China's leading authority on rice research, stated that his own students had also participated in research on transgenic rice. However, not long ago, Yuan Longping publicly stated that the government should be especially cautious in approving the commercialization of transgenic plants. His reasoning was that scientists cannot fully predict what kind of mutations genetic modification of organisms might cause.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
“Although the experiments are very mature, the potential impact on humans may not become apparent until future generations,” Yuan Longping said.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Under these circumstances, researchers of some domestic GM projects have repeatedly complained that the commercialization of their research results has been obstructed by an “overly strict” approval process.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
There are many other doubts about GM technology. Many scientists worry that if the genes of GM crops “drift” into the surrounding environment through pollination and other means, it could trigger an ecological crisis. Another doubt points out that when GM cotton was promoted, due to poor management, cotton seeds came from miscellaneous sources, many of which had not received formal assessment and approval, and some people could not even say where the cotton they planted came from. People worry that compared with the cotton worn on one's body, the rice that ultimately goes into one's mouth, if poorly managed, could cause unknowable dangers.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
In 2008, Ministry of Agriculture officials stated that the Biosafety Committee held regular meetings twice a year, and at each meeting the question of “whether to approve GM rice” was discussed, but it was never approved. At that time, the committee was still in its second term, with 74 members in total. A member said in an interview that GM technology “has good intentions and obvious effects, but the dangers cannot be predicted.”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
However, before these remarks were made, in April 2008, the Ministry of Agriculture had already completed research for revising the “Regulations on the Safety Management of Agricultural Genetically Modified Organisms.” Media reported that the result of this research was the view that “on the premise of science and safety, the previously overly complex approval procedures should be appropriately simplified and the process for bringing GM crops to market shortened.” This move was seen as targeting GM rice and marking an "acceleration of GM rice commercialization."文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Some also noticed that as early as 2007, the 16-character guideline for GM crop development had already been adjusted from “scientific planning, active research, steady progress, strengthened management” to “accelerate research, promote application, standardize management, scientific development.” This shift did not attract much attention.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
With the beginning of this “acceleration,” only about a year passed before a technology previously considered to carry “dangers” was quietly approved for production.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
The relevant departments“ permission for GM rice cultivation is regarded as the inevitable result of a long-term national project. In the ”National Medium- and Long-Term Plan for Science and Technology Development (2006-2020)" published in 2004, "cultivation of new varieties of genetically modified organisms" was designated as one of 16 major special projects, with a total budget exceeding 20 billion yuan.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
From that time on, GMOs “became a very hot research field.” Jiang Gaoming commented: “No matter what problems are discovered, it won't stop, because once the money starts being spent, it can't be stopped.”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
The project that received the safety certificate this time is reported to have begun research in 1995 and completed productive testing between 2003 and 2004. Researchers on the project had said they “did not want to wait indefinitely,” because a variety that currently has great advantages might lose its competitiveness after several years.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
Now, his hope has come true. Although the Ministry of Agriculture emphasized in its response that the transgenic rice “must still pass variety certification and obtain seed production and operation licenses before it can enter commercial production and application,” when the news came out, the stocks of three listed companies related to seed production surged in response.文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
The Ministry of Agriculture commented: “This is an important achievement with independent intellectual property rights obtained through our country's GM technology research, laying a good foundation for commercial production.”文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/
(FromChina Youth Daily）文章源自FOFCC-http://fofcc.org.cn/en/11203/