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Golden Rice, considered to be at the forefront of
battling hunger in poorer countries, is suspected of
being the cause of more damage as uncontrollable
mutations cause harm to the genome of the host plant,
rendering it unfit for the market. This genetically
modified food was announced amid great hype in 2000 as
the “discovery of the century” in combating widespread
Vitamin A deficiency in the Third World.
Swiss Biotechnology
Golden Rice was created by Ingo Potrykus of The
Department of Plant Sciences from the Swiss Federal
Institute, and also Professor Peter Beyer of the
University of Freiburg in 1999. Since then it has been
analysed in laboratories throughout the world. This
project has cost US$100million and is financed by the
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, the Biotechnology
Program of the European Community, the Swiss Federal
Office for Education and Science, and also has the
support of the Rockefeller Foundation.
The development of Golden Rice has continued in the
Laboratories of Syngenta, which in 2005 succeeded in
producing its variant, GR2, using the improved version
of the maize enzyme fitoeno-synthase, which in turn
produces over twenty-three times the amount of rice that
the carotenoids originally contained.
Rapid Global Issues
Shortly after its media launch, the transgenic rice soon
caused controversy that still continues. Agencies
working in the field of nutrition have claimed that
using this product as a remedy for Vitamin A deficiency
is “absurd”. There are a number of other sources of
Vitamin A and infinitely cheaper alternatives available,
such as green vegetables and other varieties of black
rice. These are also rich in other essential vitamins
and minerals, and therefore can be claimed to be more
nutritious.
The agencies argue that the main cause of hunger and
malnutrition in the Third World is the industrial
monoculture of the Green Revolution, which has
devastated agricultural biodiversity and soil
fertility. This has resulted in a gradual deepening of
the deficiencies in micronutrients and minerals of
food.
Scientific Advice
Owned by Syngenta, the Swiss multinational of
Genetically Modified Organism (GMO), donated GR2 under
licence for further research and development for
institutes in China, India, the Philippines, Indonesia,
Bangladesh and Vietnam. Indeed in India, where the
first independent evaluation into the use of GMO’s took
place, it was shown that the Bt Brinjal eggplant caused
many changes in several species of animals (including
diarrhoea, increased water consumption and a decrease in
the liver weight of rats). When the grains were
subjected to tests for carotenoid content, scientists
found less than 1% of the expected number. After
cooking the rice, the carotenoid content was reduced by
50%. Long-term studies mandated by the Austrian
government have shown that rats fed with genetically
modified maize hybrids produced fewer and smaller
litters. At the same time, the Italian National
Research Institute published a study showing that forage
maize produced disturbances in the immune system of both
young and old rats.
One recalls that the creators of Golden Rice forged an
agreement whereby the developers of Golden Rice could do
so commercially, but under the condition that farmers in
developing countries that produce less than US$10,000 a
year could get their seeds for free. For now however,
the product remains in the laboratory and is still not
yet ready for commercial use.
Swisslatin
(01.07.2009) |
