Why do many countries ban GMOs if they arent the main cause of environmental issues?

Expert response from Community Manager

Moderator for GMOAnswers.com

Thursday, 19/06/2014 12:14

As Greg Wandrey, director for stewardship and compliance at DuPont Pioneer, points out, "in fact, the number of countries that don't allow the cultivation of biotech crops is small."
 
He says, "Biotech crops are cultivated or imported in so many countries because they: 1. benefit farmers ($98 billion additional income for farmers since 1996); 2. benefit the planet (saved greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing 10 million cars); and 3. are safe. GM crops are some of the most researched and tested. For example, there are more than 1,000 studies on biotechnology available on www.biofortified.org. In addition, major scientific bodies and regulatory agencies around the world have reviewed the research on GM crops and determined they are as safe as their non-GM counterparts."
 
Cathleen Enright, executive director for the Council for Biotechnology Information, also discusses this topic in another response. Here is an excerpt:
 

“I'm aware of only one country, Kenya, with a ban in place on GM food imports. The decision came about in November 2012, apparently during a cabinet meeting, and circumvented the existing Kenyan Biosafety Act and the National Biosafety Authority, the regulatory agency established to regulate the use of GMOs.

“Every other country that has a regulatory system in place for GMOs allows GMOs to be imported for food and animal feed, including the European Union (EU), which has a thorough and comprehensive regulatory system for the assessment and approval of GMOs (EU law).

“EFSA's FAQ on genetically modified organisms is available here.

“The EFSA director's statement on GM food is available here.

“In fact, the EU's safety assessment process for GMOs is largely similar to that of other countries around the world―Japan, China, Brazil, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States and many, many others. Each has determined that GMOs are substantially equivalent to their non-GM counterparts.

“I think people may incorrectly perceive that the EU has a ban on GMOs for food and animal feed because of polarized public opinion and extended delays in the EU approval process, particularly the final step―a political decision-making process in which the member states vote on the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) scientific opinion. By mid-2011, 39 GM products were approved for food and feed use in the EU, with 72 approvals pending due to delays in the regulatory process.

“Despite the GMO controversy in the EU, it imports 72 percent (2011) of the protein-rich feed needed to support its livestock industry from Brazil, Argentina and the United States, the vast majority of which is GM.

“The EU has approved just two GM crops for cultivation: a GM corn that is resistant to a devastating pest, the European; and a potato that contains only one of the two starches traditionally found in potatoes (amylopectin), which is desired for industrial use, such as in papermaking. Eight EU member states (France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Luxemburg, Austria, Hungary and Greece) have banned an insect-resistant corn variety citing environmental concerns, despite an EFSA determination in 2012 that said the bans were not justified. These are political bans that conflict with the scientific advice of its central European Union government. Spain and Portugal continue to grow the insect-resistant corn on a commercial scale. Germany, Sweden and the Czech Republic grow the amylopectin potato.

“In contrast with the EU, Japan has a functioning, science-based regulatory process for GM products, reviewing and approving GMOs within fairly predictable time frames. By mid-2011, Japan had approved 130 GM products for food use and the 95 crops for which environmental release (including cultivation) had been sought.”

GMO Answers has also made available a map of where GMOs are approved for cultivation, food, feed and trial.

 
In regards to your comment about GMOs and the environment, you might find these questions and answers interesting:

•       I am interested in learning more about how biotech seeds improve sustainability. Can you provide examples?
•       How is biodiversity impacted by the introduction of GM crops?...
•       How can Monsanto assure that artificial GMO genes do not propagate into natural ecosystems or non-GMO crops?

 
We welcome any additional questions you may have. 

Expert response from Community Manager

Moderator for GMOAnswers.com

Thursday, 19/06/2014 12:14

As Greg Wandrey, director for stewardship and compliance at DuPont Pioneer, points out, "in fact, the number of countries that don't allow the cultivation of biotech crops is small."
 
He says, "Biotech crops are cultivated or imported in so many countries because they: 1. benefit farmers ($98 billion additional income for farmers since 1996); 2. benefit the planet (saved greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing 10 million cars); and 3. are safe. GM crops are some of the most researched and tested. For example, there are more than 1,000 studies on biotechnology available on www.biofortified.org. In addition, major scientific bodies and regulatory agencies around the world have reviewed the research on GM crops and determined they are as safe as their non-GM counterparts."
 
Cathleen Enright, executive director for the Council for Biotechnology Information, also discusses this topic in another response. Here is an excerpt:
 

“I'm aware of only one country, Kenya, with a ban in place on GM food imports. The decision came about in November 2012, apparently during a cabinet meeting, and circumvented the existing Kenyan Biosafety Act and the National Biosafety Authority, the regulatory agency established to regulate the use of GMOs.

“Every other country that has a regulatory system in place for GMOs allows GMOs to be imported for food and animal feed, including the European Union (EU), which has a thorough and comprehensive regulatory system for the assessment and approval of GMOs (EU law).

“EFSA's FAQ on genetically modified organisms is available here.

“The EFSA director's statement on GM food is available here.

“In fact, the EU's safety assessment process for GMOs is largely similar to that of other countries around the world―Japan, China, Brazil, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States and many, many others. Each has determined that GMOs are substantially equivalent to their non-GM counterparts.

“I think people may incorrectly perceive that the EU has a ban on GMOs for food and animal feed because of polarized public opinion and extended delays in the EU approval process, particularly the final step―a political decision-making process in which the member states vote on the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) scientific opinion. By mid-2011, 39 GM products were approved for food and feed use in the EU, with 72 approvals pending due to delays in the regulatory process.

“Despite the GMO controversy in the EU, it imports 72 percent (2011) of the protein-rich feed needed to support its livestock industry from Brazil, Argentina and the United States, the vast majority of which is GM.

“The EU has approved just two GM crops for cultivation: a GM corn that is resistant to a devastating pest, the European; and a potato that contains only one of the two starches traditionally found in potatoes (amylopectin), which is desired for industrial use, such as in papermaking. Eight EU member states (France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Luxemburg, Austria, Hungary and Greece) have banned an insect-resistant corn variety citing environmental concerns, despite an EFSA determination in 2012 that said the bans were not justified. These are political bans that conflict with the scientific advice of its central European Union government. Spain and Portugal continue to grow the insect-resistant corn on a commercial scale. Germany, Sweden and the Czech Republic grow the amylopectin potato.

“In contrast with the EU, Japan has a functioning, science-based regulatory process for GM products, reviewing and approving GMOs within fairly predictable time frames. By mid-2011, Japan had approved 130 GM products for food use and the 95 crops for which environmental release (including cultivation) had been sought.”

GMO Answers has also made available a map of where GMOs are approved for cultivation, food, feed and trial.

 
In regards to your comment about GMOs and the environment, you might find these questions and answers interesting:

•       I am interested in learning more about how biotech seeds improve sustainability. Can you provide examples?
•       How is biodiversity impacted by the introduction of GM crops?...
•       How can Monsanto assure that artificial GMO genes do not propagate into natural ecosystems or non-GMO crops?

 
We welcome any additional questions you may have.