GMO trials now being conducted in 7 sites

STA. MARIA, Pangasinan – Experimental trials of Bt corn, a genetically modified (GM) crop, are now being conducted in seven sites in five provinces in the country.

The experiments, are being held in the Isabela towns of Echague, Cauayan, and Ilagan; Sta. Maria, Pangasinan; Pili, Camarines Sur; Kibawe, Bukidnon; and Tampakan, South Cotabato.

Three other sites have yet to be planted to Bt corn.

Bt stands for Bacillus thuringiensis, a bacterium that naturally occurs in soil and other common habitats. Through genetic engineering, a specific gene of Bt has been introduced into a corn variety. The Bt corn produces its natural pesticide against the destructive Asian corn borer, which is responsible for heavy losses incurred by Filipino corn farmers every year.

Bt corn is a product of the scientific process called biotechnology, which has been broadly defined as "any technique that uses living organisms (or parts of organisms) to make or modify a product, to improve plants or animals, or to develop substances for specific uses.

Biotechnology involves genetically modified plants, animals, or organisms that have been altered or engineered to express specific traits, like resistance to pest, that do not occur naturally. They are called transgenic because the desired genes of one organism have been transplanted to the cells of another organism.

Earlier, the National Committee on Biosafety in the Philippines (NCB) had approved the application of Monsanto Phils. Inc. for "Field Bioefficacy Verification Trial of Yieldgard Corn Against Asiatic Corn Borer, Ostrinia funacalis Gunee in the Philippines."

NCBP is a government body created in 1990 by then President Corazon Aquino to oversee the implementation of biosafety guidelines. Adopted in 1991, the guidelines cover activities such as importation, research, development, introduction, field release, and production or manufacture of biological materials, particularly where genetic manipulation is involved or whether its importation of exotic microorganisms, plants, or animals.

The committee is headed by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Undersecretary for Research and Development (R&D). Its members include a biologist, an environmental scientist, a physical scientist, a social scientist, two respective members of the community, and a representative each of the Departments of Agriculture (DA), Health (DOH), and Environment (DENR).

As gathered by this writer, Monsanto had proposed 31 sites in six provinces in October last year for the experimental trials of Bt corn.

Last June, after a thorough assessment of the potential biosafety risks that might be associated with the proposed activities, the NCBP allowed the conduct of the field trials in 10 sites in six provinces for two planting seasons.

The NCBP agreed that the proposed activities posed no significant risks to human health and the environment and any other risks are within the proponent’s (Monsanto) means to control and manage.

According to the committee, the procedures and provisions stipulated in the Planned Release Guidelines for GM Organisms (GMO) and Potentially Harmful Exotic Species (PHES) were strictly implemented and complied with by the project proponent.

From December 2000 to March 2001, public information activities were conducted in the proposed sites. Resolutions from the barangays, municipal governments, and in some cases up to the provincial level, supporting the field testing in their respective areas were received by the NCBP and were considered responses to the 30-day public comment period.

The NCBP-approved Public Information Sheet for Purposes of Public Notification was also simultaneously published in newspapers of general circulation for three consecutive weeks. Moreover, these were posted for three consecutive weeks in strategic areas in the localities where the proposed field testing would be conducted.

Simultaneous with these activities, the proposal was referred to the Scientific and Technical Review Panel (STRP) for an independent review and evaluation of the merits of the proposal.

The proposal (including amendments, institutional biosafety committee or IBC endorsements, inputs/recommendations from the STRP, public comments, scientific literature and peer-journals, other pieces of information and data that the NCBP considers are relevant in the proposed activities and the individual assessment of each other) became the basis for the NCBP‘s final evaluation and decision.

In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Leonardo Q. Montemayor, DOST Undersecretary and NCBP chairman Rogelio Panlasigui stated:

"The committee (NCBP) finds the biosafety risks associated with the above-mentioned proposal to be within acceptable limits, i.e., the proposed activity poses no significant risks to human health and the environment and any other risks are within the means of the proponent to control and manage."

Further, Dr. Panlasigui said, the NCBP has determined that the proposal complied with the existing NCBP Guidelines on Planned Release of Genetically Manipulated Organisms (GMO) and Potential Harmful Exotic Species.