Policies: Global Collection
EU is not "one-size fits all"
on GMOs
Some lessons learned as we have researched Europe:
- Countries that do not comply with European Union regulation and do not allow import of approved GMO varieties (for example, GMO corn used as livestock feed) are fined by regulatory agencies
- Each country has its own unique agricultural policies, with Spain being the largest producer and consumer of GMOs
- While genetically engineered food must be labelled in Europe, meat derived from livestock fed genetically engineered foods does not need to be labelled
Hunger is a distribution not scarcity issue
In the "Opportunity" section of the movie trailer, we quote a common argument supporting genetic engineering, and we didn't have time to rebut it in the trailer, since the movie is primarily about food safety.
To set the record straight, world agriculture produces 17 percent more calories per person today than it did 30 years ago, despite a 70 percent population increase. This is enough to provide everyone in the world with at least 2,720 kilocalories (kcal) per person per day (FAO 2002, p.9). Another way to say it: there is enough food being produced today to support an overnight, 20% increase in global population.
So why is there hunger today? The principal problem is that many people in the world do not have sufficient land to grow, or income to purchase, enough food. In a nutshell, it is a distribution problem. Many policy watchdogs fear that putting technology and patent premiums on the price of seeds will make distribution problems worsen. For example, while a technology premium raises the price, on average, 30 dollars for every 100 dollars worth of seed in the United States, the premium looks much different in India. There, GMO seeds are over 100% more expensive than local seed varieties.
Preventing antibiotic resistant bacteria in humans
Some strains of GMO corn can make people resistent to some antibiotics. Bt-176 corn, though grown for five years prior, was banned by the United States in January 2000, and Spain in 2004, because its use can make animals and people resistant to ampicillin. The antibiotic is used as a resistance marker gene in GM plants.
See web site.
Global Guidelines
The Cartagena Biosafety Protocol (“Protocol”), which became effective on September 11 2003:
- Is a binding international agreement related to its parent treaty, the Convention on Biological Diversity
- Currently is a primary driving force behind the establishment of national biosafety regulatory systems in countries that have ratified, or acceded to the Protocol
- Empowers countries to establish biosafety procedures and provides the scientific and legal boundaries under which such systems should operate
- Has the potential to effectuate a common set of processes and procedures for biosafety that will safeguard the environment and the public while allowing for international commerce and product innovation
- Discusses the “transboundary movement, transit, handling, and use of all living modified organisms that may have adverse effects on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account risks to human health (Article 4)
- Says living modified organisms (LMOs) are organisms (such as seeds, trees or fish) that contain novel genetic material introduced through in vitro techniques (e.g. recombinant DNA) or cell fusion (Article 3)
- Although the Protocol covers all LMOs, it primarily addresses two particular uses of LMOs: (1) those that will be intentionally introduced into the environment; and (2) those directly used for food, feed, or processing (“FFP”)
- LMOs used in the laboratory are left to the discretion of the individual country
- Processed foods that have ingredients that came from LMOs afre also not covered
- For the first time that LMOs will be intentionally introduced into the environment, “Advance Informed Agreement (“AIA”)” procedure (Article 7) states that an exporter of an LMO provide a notice with detailed information about the LMO to the importing country (Article 8)
- The importing country then reviews the information, conducts a risk assessment, and decides, based on the risk assessment results, whether to approve or reject the LMO (Articles 10 and 15)
