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I am looking for GMO safety study on MonsantoDow SmartStax corn sold under the Genuity Monsanto and Mycogen Dow brands. Study must be on Smartstax itself, not individual traits. Also, study must be replicated. Ideally, studies will include statisticians review but not required. Thank you.

Submitted by: CT


Answer

Expert response from GMOAnswers Admin_1

Wednesday, 02/09/2015 12:18

Thank you for your enquiry on SmartStax® corn.   Monsanto and Dow have developed SmartStax and it is one of newer genetically modified (GM) corn offerings.  This product was developed by crossing four different types of GM maize, each with specific traits.  It has very effective resistance to specific above and below-ground insects, and is also tolerant to two different herbicides.  The combination of all of these traits gives the farmer a lot of protection from these specific destructive insects, and also choices about how to manage weeds.  

 

As with all of our GM crop varieties, Monsanto is committed to making sure that SmartStax does not pose a risk to humans, animals, or the environment. Over 1000 independent studies have shown that crops developed through modern technologies are as safe as those developed through traditional breeding.  GM crops have been confirmed as safe for the environment and safe for consumption by regulatory agencies across the U.S. and the world. SmartStax was approved in the U.S. following a comprehensive demonstration of safety that was based on safety studies encompassing nutritional and environmental considerations. 

 

A key part of that safety assessment was the study of the grain composition.  The levels of over 50 different components (protein, fat, amino acids, vitamins, etc.) were analyzed in SmartStax corn grown in replicated trials at four different locations, and compared to levels in non-GM varieties.  That study was published in 2013 in the Journal of Agricultural Food Chemistry (Lundry et al., J Agric Food Chem. 2013, Feb 27;61(8):1991-8; link to the article on-line is http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf304005n).  The results showed that SmartStax is equivalent to other non-GM corn varieties and that it is a safe as conventional corn.  I hope that you will find the study useful in understanding how Monsanto approaches the study of grain composition and how seriously Monsanto takes the safety of its new crop varieties.  

 

For a deeper dive in safety studies and data, please see these publically available resources:  Pesticide Fact Sheet available from the EPA and the SmartStax product summary available on Monsanto.com.